


I Am The Antichrist To You

by SunshineA



Series: Lucid Lovers, Iron And Frost [2]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Bottom!Loki, Explicit Language, Explicit Sexual Content, Hurt/Comfort, I love when they do that, I think that would be all, M/M, They are switching again, Top!Loki, bottom!tony, i don't know how to tag things, top!tony
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-09-19
Updated: 2013-09-19
Packaged: 2017-12-27 02:21:09
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 35,092
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/973145
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SunshineA/pseuds/SunshineA
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Loki and Tony got together. They knew it wouldn't be easy, not after what Loki did on Earth and before the fall, but both of them were determined to do everything in their power so Loki would be allowed to stay with Tony on Earth. Even if it means fighting their own.</p>
            </blockquote>





	I Am The Antichrist To You

**Author's Note:**

> Illustrations made by Staubengel: [[I]](http://staubengel.tumblr.com/post/61679180214/illustration-1-for-wonderful-theskyofsunshineas) and [[II]](http://staubengel.tumblr.com/post/61679241832/illustration-2-for-wonderful-theskyofsunshineas)
> 
> P.S. You don't need to read the first part of the series to understand this one ;)

No one ever said it would be easy. They never asked for easy because both of them were far far away from it. Yet, they still had hope – although they would never admit that to themselves, let alone to each other – that everything would fall into place and they would be happy without any complications.

No matter the fact that they both had unfinished businesses. No matter how fucked up they both were, and no matter this one little insignificant detail – they weren’t from the same planet.

Yet they still hoped, for everything it was worth, that they would be together no matter what. Because they really loved each other, they had no doubt about that.

It’s just… Was their love strong enough to survive all of the adversities?

* * *

This was just ridiculous. He was barely back and there was drama all around him.

He knew SHIELD wouldn’t greet him with open arms, especially if Thor told them where he was and why he went there. Thor didn’t know the real reason, but what he did know was enough for Tony to expect something like that to happen. Still, it took him by surprise when he saw at least twenty agents running around the tower; half of them on the roof where he arrived.

Now, he was sitting in his living room, surrounded by some petty dudes who called themselves agents. Apparently Fury wasn’t here, he just sent a bunch of rookies to take care of everything before he actually found the time to arrive himself. Tony was beginning to think he was being considered less of a threat now. He promised himself he would work on that later by breaking into SHIELD’s secure system and making a little mess. It shouldn’t take much effort.

Yet, he wanted to get this done as soon as possible. Loki was waiting for his sign and he didn’t want to keep him waiting. If they still didn’t know he was back on Earth, there was a big possibility it wouldn't be long until they finally realized. And by that time, Tony and Loki would have a plan ready to be executed.

Obviously, the plan would be about convincing people to leave them both alone. No deaths, no threats, no unnecessary fights of words or fists. They would try to make it as peaceful as they could. Neither of them wanted to give SHIELD or Asgard more reasons to take Loki away. Not that Tony would let that happen.

It didn’t take a lot of time for Natasha to show up, her stride making every agent in the room stop whatever they were doing and make her a place. She walked straight for Tony, and as far as he was concerned, she was hiding her anger behind that peaceful façade of hers. Why she was angry was a mystery to him, and knowing Miss Romanoff it would stay that way. Unless Tony could provoke her, which was a very tempting thought but, he and Loki decided – no unnecessary trouble.

“Agent Romanoff,” Tony greeted her in his usual, cocky demeanor as she sat down in the armchair on his right side. “How are you today?”

She sat with her back straight and with one long leg crossed over the other. She was wearing her usual SHIELD uniform that showed off enough for his imagination to run freely over the projects of his next suits in his head. Her hair was a bit longer than the last time, not to mention it was no longer curly. Tony thought she looked better than before.

“Probably better than you right now, Stark,” she replied and rested her back in the cushion of the armchair. No matter how relaxed she seemed to be, there was still this thing about her that told everyone around she was ready to kill at any moment. “The Director is pissed at you.”

Tony couldn’t stop a grin from spreading on his lips as soon as he heard that. “He is? I’m so sorry to hear that,” he said sarcastically and spread his arms over the back of his white custom-made couch. “What did I do this time?” he asked innocently and cocked one eyebrow as he looked at Natasha with mock interest.

“You tell me,” she replied sweetly, and her fingers started banging gently on the armrest. “I was pulled out of my vacation in Paris—“

“Right, vacation,” Tony snorted, cutting her off.

“—and told to come at your Tower and make sure you won’t run off,” Natasha finished as though nothing happened. “There wasn’t much in the information I was able to access on the way here, so that’s why I’m asking you. You must’ve really pissed Fury off if the whole place is filled with agents.”

“Whole place?” he asked with a wince of displeasure. “You mean they practically took over my Tower?” he glanced around wanting nothing more but for his look to cause severe pain.

“Yep. I was surprised. I thought no one could override JARVIS but you.”

“Oh, cut the crap, Romanoff,” he snapped and tilted his head back, letting out a frustrated sigh. “JARVIS, what the hell happened? Why did you let them in?”

It was the first time he had spoken to his AI since Loki sent him here and he suddenly felt guilty they didn’t have a proper greeting. No “Daddy’s home” or simple “I’m back, show me the reports”. He was so surprised by SHIELD running around his place he totally forgot about it.

“That was an order I’ve received from Miss Potts, sir. I could not reach you so I sent information about the agents trying to enter StarkTower, and she told me to let them in. Shall I call her for you, sir?” JARVIS replied in his British accent.

A snort was heard from Natasha’s side, and it took a lot for Tony to stop himself from shooting back a put-down. It wouldn’t work on her, not to mention the fact he really had no idea what to say to that.

His AI’s reply only left him wondering what made Pepper let the agents in. She knew how he felt about SHIELD and what kind of relationship – or more so the lack of it - he had with the organization. And he had informed her about going away for some time, so he thought it was obvious no one was allowed to enter his personal floors. And yet, here were the agents, running around like chickens with their heads cut off.

Could she be worried about him? She always was, that one was sure, but why was she in the first place? Searching for Loki was one of those decisions she somehow approved, even if she never a said a word about it. She usually voiced her disapproval with things, and her lack of something to say about this just made him more sure he was doing a good thing.

But then there was that thing about him breaking up with her because of Loki, and she might have disliked the fact he was going after him. This would be totally understandable – they broke up maybe a month ago and it’s not like he had no feelings for her because of the god. There was a reason he decided to be in a relationship with her. Hell, he even wanted to propose to her before the Battle of New York and Loki happened. He would always love her but, there was no doubt in him he loved Loki more.

“No need to call her,” he replied and heard the AI comply obediently a second after.

“Your ex giving you trouble?” Natasha snorted again and leaned forward a little. “You should know better than anyone that you can’t keep your exes close.”

“Jesus Christ, why would you care, Natalie?” Tony snapped back, knowing it would have no impact on her whatsoever. It still made him feel a little better, though. At the mention of her fake name, she just raised one eyebrow, obviously unimpressed. But one of the agents seemed intrigued enough by that to look at them curiously. As soon as he saw Natasha’s expression, he went back to what he was doing. Which made Tony think about what exactly he was doing.

“They’re just pretending they’re busy, if that’s what you're wondering about,” the redhead replied before Tony could so much as think about asking the question. “They can’t stand still when the Director arrives so they're just…” she thought about the best way to put it for a moment, “checking the floors in search of something _supernatural_ ,” she finished with a shrug.

“What makes you think you’ll find anything of that sort here? I was out for like, a week. No one has been here since I left. Not counting you now,” he gestured at the room with a displeased expression. “Which, by the way, really pisses me off. It’s my personal floor.”

“Yes, we know,” Natasha stated simply and leaned back in the armchair, which really just made Tony more pissed. “Personally, I think you would hide something interesting for us somewhere less obvious than this floor, but orders are orders.”

“And you obey them, as you swore,” came a familiar voice from the middle of the room, and when they both turned around, they saw Fury, standing with his hands hidden behind his back, long leather coat on as usual.

“Yes, well, excuse me, but I don’t really give a shit,” Tony stood up and looked into his one eye, jaw tensed from the anger building up inside of him. “I still don’t understand what you are doing in my Tower.”

Fury wasn’t in any hurry to answer. He just raised his chin a little and slowly walked towards Tony, stopping behind the couch. They eyed each other for a long moment, every single eye locked on them the whole time. No one moved, either. It’s like they were scared something was about to happen and they had to intervene, even if most of the people in the room wouldn’t really know what to do.

“I have my reasons,” Fury replied finally and walked around the couch slowly to stand on Natasha’s side.

Tony gritted his teeth at that and took a step back, turning in place to look at the man without any effort. “Well, I don’t care about your reasons so if you could nicely remove your asses from my Tower, I would be pleased with that,” he growled angrily.

“We will as soon as you tell us where you went,” Fury said in a voice that didn’t accept refusal, and no matter how many times he used that with Tony it never really worked. And wouldn’t work this time either.

“You know damn well where I went, Fury, don’t fuck around,” he snapped in response and fisted his hands, teeth clenched.

“Touchy, are we now?” he mocked, an evil smile twisting his lips.

Tony did his best not to snap back something he would surely regret soon after. He had to get rid of them as soon as possible so Loki could come, he didn’t have time for any games. He needed to come up with something; fast.

And so he settled for the truth.

“I went to Jotunheim. With Thor’s help,” he replied, taking deep breaths through his nose to calm himself down. “I wanted to find Reindeer Games and get my revenge for what he did to me.”

“And?” Fury prompted, his forehead now full of wrinkles as he expected more.

“And I got it?” Tony finished and looked at Director like he was a real idiot. “That’s why I’m here.”

Well, it was some part of the truth.

Natasha seemed to see something was not right with his story, but it was too late to take everything back. It’s not like he would come up with something better anyway.

“You’re pretty fit for someone who just got back from a search and fight with a demi-god,” she said slowly, watching his every move, as she always did when she was at work.

“Like I said, Thor helped me,” he said calmly and shrugged, tugging his hands into the pockets of his under suit. “We searched together and when we found Loki he left me to do what I wanted.”

He knew it wasn’t making any sense, but his mind didn’t want to cooperate with him at the moment, and he swore he could see Natasha’s thoughts for a split second. She was putting the pieces together already and it wasn’t a good sign for him and Loki.

_Think, Tony, think!_

“Still, that doesn’t explain the lack of injuries,” Fury stated and narrowed his eye at him, his eye patch suddenly looking oddly scary and not funny. “Unless you gained some healing powers you haven’t told us about while you spent a month with the god.”

“I didn’t,” he said quickly and gritted his teeth, forcing his mind to think fast about the explanation to that one. “I went to fight him alone but he already looked like he went through one,” he started talking, hoping that everything was making more sense to them now. He actually prayed for it. “So I left him there without saying anything to Thor. He would find him there anyway.”

There was a silence in the room, one that could be cut with a knife. Everyone kept on looking at him, Fury and now also Natasha, who was still sitting in the armchair. He didn’t like the idea of everyone focusing on him, and it really made him uncomfortable, especially when he was lying straight to Fury’s and Natasha’s eyes. Which really wasn’t all that smart, everyone knew that.

But what other choice did he have? Since he and Loki needed to come up with a plan, and Jotunheim wasn’t a good place for it, they picked Earth to do that. Mostly because Tony wanted him to come here. Back there, the consequences of them being together (it still felt odd to admit that, even after his relationship with Pepper) had looked less threatening. Tony was actually convinced they would go through all of this without as much as a scratch. Now he understood why Loki wanted to think the whole thing through for so long. He had seen everything that awaited them just like Tony did right now.

And if he had to be honest with himself, it was scaring the shit out of him. Now that he had Fury and Natasha in front of him, not to mention dozens of agents running around his Tower, he realized how hard a task it was to make it all easy enough for Loki to stay with him on Earth.

And there was also a case with Asgard and Odin, who will probably want to still punish his son no matter the fact that his other son had rescued him from eventual death. Tony still had no idea what exactly had happened to the trickster when he sent him back to Earth, risking his life in the process. He already looked weary and hurt in so many ways – many people would kill themselves sooner. And yet Loki survived the Chitauri’s tortures. That’s all Tony really knew, and he knew Loki wouldn’t want to talk about it for a long time to come.

But, back to SHIELD. They would surely make things as hard for them as they could. Especially if they found out about Loki long after his arrival. And Tony would make sure it stayed secret for a little while.

He just hoped his half-truth, half-lie would earn them the time they needed.

Natasha kept watching closely, brows furrowed a little and lips parted as though she realized what was going on. Tony’s heart started beating faster at that thought, and he started praying to literally all the gods that existed, begging them so that she wouldn’t figure everything out this fast. But even if she did, she said nothing so far.

“I’ll speak with Thor about that,” Fury assured him in his usual tone of voice, bringing both, him and the redhead out of their reveries. “For now… I have my eye on you.”

Stark used all of his will power not to laugh at that one, no matter the situation his was in now. It was just too funny, and remembering how he really watched over him last time he said that made him want to laugh even more.

“Uh, yeah, sure,” he stuttered in mock worry, watching as Fury walked out along with all of the agents. Even Natasha followed him to the elevator, glancing back at Tony over her arm a worryingly high number of times.

As much as he wanted to brush it off, he couldn’t afford that, and since it was too early to call Loki here, he had to find himself something to do. He walked towards his suit, now lying in the middle of his bar. It was in pieces, of course. They wouldn’t even let him get down to his workshop and disassemble it properly. Or use the catwalk he made especially for it on the highest floor. He had to do everything manually. Not that he had something against it, but it took too much time, during which everyone was staring at him in a way he had found out he wasn’t fond of.

And so he decided to assemble his suit again, and when he’s finished, he would call Loki to come. That, according to him, was the safest way. And it was a good thing that before the god sent him here, they had agreed he would show up invisible.

All that was left for them to do now was hope. Hope they would have the time they need.

* * *

Loki sat on the edge of a cliff in a part of the land that didn't even belong to United States, from what he knew. He watched the waves crash over the vertical rock wall underneath him, unable to stop thinking about what he and Tony were doing.

This was madness. Even for him. If it wasn’t Tony and the fact he loved the man, he would himself laugh about their plan and run away as far as was possible. Away from Earth, from Asgard, from the Chitauri and the Other.

But he was so in love, he couldn’t stand the thought of leaving Stark alone. Not when Thanos knew what he felt towards him – and even if he wasn’t aware of it now, he would soon. And he couldn’t just leave the one person that loved him back. Not now. It would be as foolish as their plan, but this kind of foolishness he couldn’t afford anymore. Tony assured him so many times he loved him. Every time he spoke those three words, his eyes lit up and he smiled widely, not even aware of it most of the time. And it was enough for Loki to believe it was the truth. Because even he – the God of Lies - couldn’t fake being in love that well.

This was a whole new experience for him. To love someone and being loved back as much? He never before had this kind of luck, the recent events showed that all too well.

Still, there was this one thing that wouldn’t leave him alone and it made all the happiness dissipate in a matter of minutes every time his mind came to that part.

What if what Tony felt right now was just the remains of the spell he cast on him with the staff? What if it all was bound to disappear in the future?

It could take a day, month, decade, maybe even a lifetime but Loki was pretty sure that if the feeling was just the remains of the spell he cast on Hawkeye and other people during his invasion, Tony would realize that someday. And Loki knew this would be his end.

No matter how hard he would try, he would always follow Tony. Anywhere and no matter the consequences. For the first time in his life, he got to feel like this, and even with all the doubts he had and fights they were bound to have in the future, he wouldn’t leave that. Not even for the greatest power in the Nine Realms, if he was to be offered it. Everything else lost meaning when Tony told him he loved him.

Loki looked up at the dark clouds above him. He couldn’t see the sky from behind them, they were so thick and almost black. He had no idea what time of the day it was because of that and how long he was already sitting here and waiting, but what was a few hours comparing to the years he had already lived. A full thousand and he still didn’t know everything about the worlds he was living in.

He lied down on the rocks, moving uncomfortably as he felt the little rocks digging through the leather of his coat and under garments into his back. He sighed with frustration at the discomfort and was about to cast a small spell to clear the ground when he remembered he couldn’t do that. The only magic he could do now was teleporting Tony and himself to Midgard and then to the Tower. He had to control himself now, because Heimdall could find him faster from that. Not to mention Thanos.

He still kept the spell that hid him from Heimdall’s eyes, though. Both Stark and he had agreed it was the best way if they wanted to keep Loki’s presence on Midgard in a secret as long as they could. It was a powerful spell – one that could bring Thanos here if he was determined to continue the tortures. But Loki was willing to take that risk. He figured that it was better because then he would show he regrets his actions and cooperation with the Chitauri. He would fight the Eternal to prove that even if he was doomed to fail. He would prove himself worthy of the forgiveness he wanted to receive from Midgardians and Odin. But just for his part in the invasion. Nothing less and nothing more. That was the only thing he thought about with regret.

His eyes fluttered shut, and he rested his hands on his abdomen, letting the breeze hit his body every few seconds, with every wave that crashed over the rocks below. Suddenly, he wanted to feel them on himself, not the wind they brought and created. He wanted to feel the force that was able to crush the rock, slowly making it disappear under the surface. The jump from here would be surely painful – the cliff was fairly high, maybe even three hundred feet, and the weather suggested a storm was about to come, so the waves were very strong now.

Loki didn’t even notice when he was on his feet, standing straight and looking down over the edge of the rock he was standing on. He watched as the waves crashed, one after another, small rocks falling into the water with every hit. It looked so strong and indomitable, and yet he was sure that if he was to jump right now, he would just get his clothes wet and a few bruises, nothing more.

Still unaware of his actions, he bent his legs and leaned forward a little, getting ready to jump, the howl of the wind from below working on him like a mermaid’s song on Midgardian sailors.

But right then he heard the voice dearest to him, and he stopped in his tracks, knowing what it meant. The voice was calling his name, full of excitement and impatience. It was just his name - four letters - and yet it made him feel the same as the owner. He straightened up and closed his eyes with a small smile, concentrating the remaining part of his magic on the spell that seconds later had him standing in the middle of StarkTower’s balcony.

He had barely opened his eyes when he felt the warm lips on his and he reciprocated the kiss, still smiling as he wrapped his arms around the man he loved. Moments later Tony pulled away, his own arms resting on Loki’s shoulders as he looked at the god, a wide grin present on his face.

“Come inside. They might see you,” he said and pulled away completely, taking Loki’s hand and pulling him inside unceremoniously.

Loki frowned at that but said nothing, knowing Tony was the one who knew better when it came to SHIELD and Midgardian technology and ways of watching people. As soon as the balcony door were closed, Loki pressed his lips against Stark’s again, humming in approval when he was able to push his tongue into his mouth, jut to lick at the roof. He felt Tony’s hands on his own waist and he let out a soft chuckle, which broke the kiss almost immediately.

“I missed you,” he whispered and ran his fingertips over Tony’s freshly shaved cheek.

This time it was Tony who chuckled, his hand moving up and down Loki’s side only to rest on his hip. “It was only a few hours.”

“So?” Loki replied and pecked his lips, and then his cheek, nose, temple and forehead. “Does it mean I can not miss you?”

“Of course, you can,” Tony rolled his eyes at him and hugged closer, letting the god know what he wanted to do now with just one motion of his hips. “I’m sorry it took so long. Fury was a bitch, as usual,” he groaned in a slight frustration and nipped at Loki’s lower lip.

Loki just hummed in approval and repeated the movement of Stark’s hips, smiling at the reaction he got from it. He sucked at the corner of Tony’s parted lips and licked the spot before he slid his tongue inside again, wrapping it around Tony’s. His hands moved down the man’s sides, fingers flicking over the hem of his fresh shirt before they sneaked underneath it, ghosting over bare, tanned skin.

He could feel the shiver that ran through Tony’s body at the touch and he smiled inside, loving the way Tony reacted to him. He could never get enough of him, of his smell and taste. He wanted to feel it all every second of the rest of his life, and he would do everything to make it happen.

“Finally I can show you how people on Earth do that,” Tony muttered against his lips after they parted for breath, and Loki couldn’t help but chuckle at that.

“I’m dying to feel it,” he smirked, letting Tony pull away completely no matter how loud his body screamed for him to go back. He felt the warm hand in his and without any hesitation followed his mortal to wherever they were going. He really didn’t care about their destination; all that mattered was that Tony would be there with him.

They stepped into the elevator, and before the door closed properly, Tony was on him again, hands roaming over his under garments, teeth scrapping at his lips in a needy kiss. Loki couldn’t stop a mix of surprised gasp and pleased moan from escaping his throat, and all he was able to do was to kiss back with as much eagerness.

It had only been a few hours since they parted, he was aware of that, and yet… He felt like he hadn't seen Stark for a small eternity. He welcomed the warm hands on his skin as soon as they found their way inside, and he remembered their last time before coming on Earth.

He smiled at that memory, because no matter the fact they were somewhat sad and bitter about the unknown future, it had been their best sex so far. They took their time with everything, explored their bodies slowly, kissing and licking on every spot they could reach. Loki spent hours on the icy floor of his cave, lying on his coat and letting Tony’s hands explore every inch of his skin, his body shivering almost constantly from the touch. The man was so gentle with it, as though he was afraid the skin would break under his touch. When they finally kissed, it was all about using this simple gesture to show how they really felt about it all. And what Loki found out made him even more bitter about the whole plan. But it was all worth the risk they were taking. They both agreed on that.

Tony bit on his lower lip hard and that shook him out of his reverie, the pain making him moan out loud. “What was that for?” he whined and looked down at Stark with a small wince.

“You drifted away. You don’t do things like that before, during and after sex with me, dear,” he replied with a grin and licked the spot he’d bitten, pulling them both out of the elevator at the same time.

Loki couldn’t stop his eyes from rolling at Tony’s words, and he followed him obediently again, knowing he would not regret it. A short while later  and he was lying on the bed with Tony on top of him, kisses driving him crazy.

Tony still couldn’t handle his under garments, and he had to stop himself from proposing a use of magic. It turned out he underestimated his lover, because soon enough the kiss broke, and he felt the warm hands on his bare skin as they pulled at his leather pants and then the wool tunic. He sat up to take off the latter and used the opportunity to roll Tony onto his back and sit on his thighs.

A surprised gasp filled the room, and it was followed by a short chuckle when Loki ran his hand up and down Tony’s sides under his shirt. “I wanted to top today,” he breathed out, trying to stop another burst of laughter as the god kept brushing his sides.

Loki just shook his head and leaned down to leave a soft wet kiss on his lips. “Who said you will not be on top?” he teased Stark and nipped at his jaw before he started licking his way down the underside of it and onto his neck. He licked the marks he made during their previous encounters, remembering each and every single one of them. He moved slowly, mostly because he wanted to tease Tony and frustrated Tony meant better sex – he had found that out just recently.

Today, Tony’s patience was really short because Loki reached only his collarbone when a pair of brittle hands squeezed his ass. He looked up at the man under him and smirked at the view – the narrowed eyes, almost black from the want and need, lips slightly parted and a light shade of pink gracing both cheeks. It was the view Loki never wanted to forget.

It made him groan out loud, and he moved up the couple of inches to press their lips together, his tongue pushing through almost immediately after Tony accepted him. His hands slipped under the other’s shirt and they roamed over the bare skin, fingers flecking over the muscles and bones. He let Tony roll them on the bed, not minding the fact he was the one on the bottom again. They kept kissing, when Stark hands pushed his leather pants down and his legs finished the job, making him the only naked person in the room.

His hands moved up on Tony’s chest, the shirt moving up as well and Loki broke the kiss, telling Tony with one gesture of his chin to sit up. His AC/DC shirt landed up on the floor seconds later, and the god licked on the column of his neck before pulling him in for another deep kiss.

“God, you’re killing me,” Tony muttered and rolled his hips against Loki’s, making them both moan out loud.

If it wasn’t for the fact they both seemed to be hungry for one another, it all would last for hours on end. But right now all they could think about was to get on with it, both of their cocks rock hard by now. Loki unzipped Tony’s pants in one swift move and pushed them down, Tony helping him eagerly to get them off completely. Only then Stark reached under the pillows and took out a small tube with strawberries on the label.

Loki said nothing, letting his lips twist in a smirk as Tony moved down in a matter of seconds, his mouth resting on the tip of Loki’s cock in a soft kiss. His back arched a little at the feeling, and he let out a small throaty sound. It seemed to be an encouragement for his lover because he felt the slick fingers probing at his entrance before they pushed inside, making his whole body squirm.

It felt different from every single time he had had sex with another man. There was no such thing as lube on Asgard – or any other realm apart from Midgard, for that matter – and they usually used saliva to make things a little less painful, if anyone wanted it that way at all. Loki’s previous sexual partners always liked it rough, and he wasn’t used to being treated with gentleness. Only Tony told him it could all be much less painful with the right help, and if he was to be honest with himself, he had waited for this moment to find out with impatience.

Now that he felt how much better the slick substance made it all, he couldn’t imagine having his next times with Tony without it. Suddenly, he felt the urge to have the lube on his cock, to see if it felt the same as he felt right now but he pushed it away, concentrating on Tony’s fingers inside him.

He was still stretched from their last encounter in the ice cave of Jotunheim, and he probably didn’t need any stretching, but he loved the way Stark was handling him, the digits pushing slowly inside like he didn’t want to cause Loki any pain. He urged him to move faster with a roll of his hips and one long look into his deep brown eyes. Tony smiled back at him softly and pushed the fingers up to his knuckles, scissoring him before pulling them out and pushing back in.

Loki’s back arched when he felt the fingertips brushing over his prostate, and his mouth fell open in an inaudible moan. He felt them again, knowing Tony recognized his reaction and wouldn't leave him alone until he decided he couldn't keep his own cock without any attention. Loki fell back onto the mattress and gripped the headboard of the bed with one hand.

“Do not… play with me… Stark…” he breathed out, and at another brush to his spot he moaned out loud, the friction making his cock twitch on his abdomen.

It wasn’t long until he felt Tony’s fingers leaving him completely. A few seconds – and the engineer’s moans – later, Loki saw the brown eyes and hair above himself. He spread his legs to the sides as far as he could and bit down on his bottom lip when he felt the tip of Tony’s cock probing at his entrance. It was slick with the lube - he could feel the substance on his skin and he gasped, impatient for what was about to come.

But Tony didn’t want to push in just now. Instead he leaned down, his cheek brushing over Loki’s. “How do you like it so far?” he whispered into Loki’s ear and the god could feel teeth brushing over his lobe.

“Very much,” he managed to reply, his hips pushing forward. He wanted to feel Tony’s cock inside him already, wanted to hear his moans, to see his face when it twisted with pleasure as he came hard inside him. He wanted to kiss him until they both couldn’t breathe.

He wanted all of him.

Tony seemed to read his mind, because just seconds after Loki answered, he could feel the warm arm in between their bodies. When the fingers brushed his cock accidentally, he let out a soft whimper, his body now desperate for any kind of friction he could get. Then he felt the tip on his entrance once again, and this time, it was followed by the head and whole length as Tony moaned in delight while pushing in.

Loki wrapped his legs around Stark’s waist, and with one strong push, he made Tony thrust in up to his balls, the sensation making both of them moan louder than before.

“God, I love when you do that,” Tony muttered and leaned in to suck on the god’s upper lip, soft hums coming out of his throat and through his nose.

Loki just rolled his hips in response, his free hand moving to rest on Tony’s back before he started pulling out slowly.

The feeling was unbelievable. Loki had no idea if it was the lube, the fact they were finally doing it on the bed or maybe both. All he knew was that he felt fantastic and that he wanted more. He urged Tony to move faster with another roll of his hips, and he got what he wanted. The thrusts were fast, but still too slow for the god. Tony set a steady pace and propped himself on his hands, both resting on either side of Loki’s head. They looked each other in the eyes the whole time, so they both knew how good they really felt.

Tony’s eyes were black by now, either because of the light or the pleasure. Loki couldn’t care less since all he could see there was love and the need for more, and he was sure Tony saw the same in his eyes. He raised his head and upper back and caught their lips in a tender kiss, one that told the other about every single emotion and sensation he felt.

They kept kissing as Tony sped up the pace, changing the angles every few thrusts. The sheer fact they were still together made Loki’s arousal grow. That meant they had better chances than he thought they would. His hope rose as well and he winced in both pleasure in happiness when Tony finally hit his prostate.

Like on cue, the thrusts became harder and deeper, making Loki fall onto the mattress again, his grip on the headboard tightening enough to make his knuckles even more pale then his skin. The fingers of his other hand dug into the skin on Tony’s back, which made the mortal gasp in slight pain, but Loki wasn’t thinking about taking back his action. His hips rolled constantly by now, meeting the thrusts halfway. Every time his spot was teased or hit, the friction from it made him squirm underneath the engineer and move his hips even more as he was now more than desperate to have his release.

Tony was moaning and panting above him, his eyes opened no matter what he was feeling. He watched Loki closely, his reactions making him more aroused than he already was. The god looked back at him after one of the thrusts that made him almost cry out and they smiled at each other before they kissed, slowly and deeply, tongues brushing against each other and lips reddening from the pressure.

Just when Loki thought it couldn’t get any better than that, Tony reached down in between their bodies again, fingers brushing over the underside of his cock, before they wrapped around him, tightening at the base before starting to move up and down his length. Loki scratched on Stark’s back, surely leaving bright pink marks there, as he felt the release building up faster than he would want it to. He gripped at the covers and pulled at the headboard, the sensations making him arch his back.

The soft kiss joined, Tony’s lips ghosting over the skin on his neck before he started sucking on the new spots or making sure the old ones wouldn’t disappear quickly. It felt like heaven seconds before he finally cried out Stark’s name, the orgasm so strong it made him drift away for a short moment. He got back to Tony breathing out a string of expletives, the god’s name mixed somewhere in between.

An hour later they were still awake, lying with covers around their legs and hips and staring out the wall made fully out of windows. It was close to midnight and sky was clear of clouds shoving Midgard’s stars and moon. It shone brightly, making Tony’s skin almost as pale as Loki’s.

“How long do you think we have?” Tony asked quietly without looking at the god in his arms.

Loki did look at him, but when he saw nothing but peace on his face, he turned his gaze back onto the sky. “I don’t know,” he sighed softly and snuggled closer to the man. “Heimdall will not  find me as long as the spell works, but I have no knowledge about Thanos. It can take him months or days,” he finished quietly and shivered a little at thought of seeing the Eternal again. He still had nightmares about the tortures almost every night.

Tony embraced him protectively when he felt him tremble and placed a soft kiss on the top of his head. “I think it’ll take months for him,” he said and winked at Loki when he looked at him with disbelief. “He’s not as smart as we are.”

“No. He is wiser,” Loki commented and closed his eyes for a few seconds. “He made me follow his orders without hesitation. You do know, I do not do that.”

“No? Funny, you listened to me pretty often for the last week,” Tony grinned and let out a small whine only moments later when he felt an elbow in between his ribs.

“Is everything a jest to you?” the god asked, trying to remain serious but failing miserably. The corners of his lips rose slightly, and he leaned in to peck Stark’s lips thankfully.

“Only funny things are,” he replied against Loki’s lips and pulled him closer, making it unable for him to turn, not to mention pulling away. “We have the time we need, Loki. Now we just need to use it well,” he said as his eyes wandered over the trickster’s face. “I will get you out of this, I promise.”

Loki’s chest literally swell with happiness and love towards the man, no matter how cliché that sounded. He kissed him tenderly, hands wrapping around his neck in the meantime, and he really couldn’t stop smiling. Tony was ready to do what was needed to be done in order to help him, even when he didn’t know the whole truth. He knew Loki was hiding something from him and yet… he still loved him and wanted to help.

Loki sometimes wondered if he deserved the man.

With all the things he had done, with all the secrets he kept, he wasn’t sure if he deserved anything good at all. Maybe punishment was meant for him since the day he was born. Maybe he was born to be evil and receive evil, nothing else and nothing more. Maybe Laufey was doing a good thing, leaving him to die just after his birth. Maybe he knew what this new life would bring to the Nine Realms.

But he wouldn’t find out now, would he?

Loki pressed himself closer to Tony and deepened the kiss, wanting the feeling of being loved to embrace him whole and push all the thoughts away from his mind. All he wanted right now was to be with Tony. He wanted to stay in this bed with Tony next to him as long as they could, even for the whole eternity. He loved and was loved, and he tried his best to convince himself it was all that really mattered. And he succeeded, even if it was just for that short moment, when Tony’s arms wrapped tighter around him.

He felt safe for the first time in a long long time.

* * *

Loki had been on Earth for more or less a week now, and he spent most of his time with Tony, sitting in the corner of his lab and watching him work. Because Tony had a lot of work to do. He needed to improve his suit, add more weapons, increase the power. That meant also a little tinkering with his arc reactor, and he didn’t like doing that if he had to be honest.

Since he had discovered the new element, he hadn't bothered with updates. He didn’t want to think about making a new, probably better version of his own life support. After almost dying from palladium poisoning from the previous device, he was more than satisfied there were no complications with the newer version. And yet, he realized that if the Chitauri came to Earth again, he wouldn't be of much use for the team. He did pretty good the last time, yes, but only with soldiers and not the big fucking worms flying around Manhattan for a good hour. He needed improvements on both his suit and arc reactor, but that didn’t mean he would pay much attention to the latter.

In fact, his attention was now focused ninety percent on Loki and the ways to save him. They kept talking about it every day, either over a meal, when Tony waited for JARVIS to finish the research or a scan or after they had sex. There were a few times already when they had fights, but each of them resulted in leaving the conversation for later.

Tony was aware Loki wasn’t an easy person to live with. After the spell took control over him during the Battle of New York and he spent a month with him on the run, he got to know Thor’s brother pretty well. Whenever he had a memory with a negative connotation from that time, he knew it was the real one. There were moments when Loki acted like a real diva, stomping on the ground or kicking whatever he found on his way – sometimes even Tony himself – when something didn’t go as he was hoping. He was hard to talk to when it came to their own points of view, since he stood by his opinion to the end, ready to shed blood if someone pointed out he was wrong in a not nice way.

He could not speak a word for days on end, without sparing even a look at Tony, and it really felt uncomfortable considering the fact they were running together, after all. Each time something like that happened, the engineer felt the urge to make Loki feel better somehow and most of the time they ended up having sex. It was times like that, when he was lost in complete pleasure and was getting over it long after, when he looked the as human he could. It was those times when they spoke honestly, and whenever Tony came back to these memories, there was no feeling of the spell. He felt like himself every time they were together, when they touched or just really _looked_ at each other. If he ever had doubts about his love for Loki being only an illusion because of the spell, he lost it all once he saw Loki again.

It took one look for him to be sure there was no spell that told him he loved the demi-god. There was no blue shade in his memories of their nights together, there was no cold feeling when he remembered his touch. All he saw was Loki himself – changed by what happened to him over the course of the last months, broken by so many lies and false promises. Driven to the edge to make himself worthy.

He still didn’t know everything about Loki’s past and why he ended up in Thanos’s hands, but he hoped that with time – which they had now – the god would eventually open himself up and confess everything. Tony could see how hard it was for him to hold it inside. He asked about the circumstances once and he regretted that almost immediately since he could see Loki tearing apart. What was tearing him up, he didn’t find out.

It was only getting better between them, even considering the fights they were having lately. It was really nothing unexpected since both of them were stubborn. The fights were inevitable with Tony really, he and Pepper fought often before and during their relationship. After, not so much, but that was mostly because they avoided each other.

Tony still hadn't talked to her about SHIELD agents in his Tower. Each morning, he promised himself he would do it today, and each day, he found something – on purpose or not – that distracted him for a whole twelve or even twenty four hours. Mostly Loki’s the distraction, obviously, but Tony knew he would have to talk to Pepper sooner rather than later. There was just too many things to talk about, too many important issues he needed to inform her of. Hell, she still had no idea Loki was here. Although she might have gathered that much; she wasn’t stupid after all.

There was so much on his mind, he really had no idea where to start.

And then JARVIS’s voice shook him out of his reverie.

“Sir, Mr Odinson is on the landing and requests discourse.”

This was not the news he wanted to hear at the moment. Not after a week of having Loki by his side. Not when they still didn’t have a complete plan worked out. His eyes locked with the god’s the second AI started talking, and he was sure there was fear apparent in his look. Loki, on the other hand, looked like the news made him more pissed and irritated than worried.

A small smile spread Loki’s lips and before Tony could stand up, the god was crouching in front of him, his soft skinny hands resting on his cheeks.

“Are you okay, my darling?” he asked and his smile widened a little, as though he wanted to made Tony feel better with it. Surprisingly, it worked and he felt a little less worried about the unexpected visit.

“I’m fine. I just-“ he swallowed hard and took in a deep breath, thinking fast. “He’ll ask how I got out of Jotunheim, you know.”

“Will he?” Loki let out a short chuckle and pecked Tony’s lips, one hand moving to comb through the brown locks. “If he asks, tell him I – in my gratitude for sparing my life – sent you back,” he said calmly, the smile never leaving his lips.

The number of times Tony saw him smiling in the last week was a few times higher than he saw him during their month spent together. It was like he had less concerns right now, when it was quite the opposite. And his smile was always the most honest and widest when Tony was with him. It made Stark’s heart swell with pride and happiness almost every time. It was just the knowledge that he was probably the reason why Loki was smiling so often was a really big thing to him. Especially when he reacted to the god in the same way.

“He’ll buy that?” he asked a little unsure but knew already that was what he was going to say anyway.

“He will,” Loki smiled and stood up, sitting down on the desk Tony was sitting at. “Most likely he has a message from the Allfather. We need to know what their moves are.”

Tony just nodded and stood up, straightening up his jeans before he looked at the god again. “JARVIS, let him in and tell I’ll be there in a few.”

“Yes, sir.”

Tony just smiled slightly and spread Loki’s legs aside to stand in between them. His arms circled the god’s waist, and he pulled him close, their chests pressed together. “It won’t take long, promise,” he hummed and pecked his red lips softly. “You can watch everything on the feed. JARV.”

“Everything is already set, sir,” the AI replied almost immediately, and both of them smiled at the same second.

“You know me so well,” Tony mused and pulled away, winking at Loki before starting for the elevator.

A couple minutes later, he faced the God of Thunder in his full armor, the helmet under his arm and cape falling freely from his shoulders. He stood facing the window, and Tony could see his reflection in the glass. His brows were furrowed, lips pressed in a tight line, eyes wandering over nothing in particular, like he was so deep in his thoughts he wasn’t really registering where he was. He looked worried. Very worried, if Tony had to be honest. He hadn't seen this expression on the Thunderer’s face since the Battle of New York. This couldn’t be a good sign.

“Thor, buddy,” he called and smiled kindly as he walked towards him. “What brings you here?”

The god turned around after a long second, confusion visible on his face. He seemed to relax the minute he saw the engineer, though, and he walked towards him quickly, pulling him into a rib-crushing hug.

“Man of Iron,” Tony heard his relieved voice, and this made him feel guilty. When they looked for Loki on Jotunheim after he escaped from Asgard’s hospital, Tony promised to call Thor after he was finished with Loki. They separated as soon as they figured in which mountain the Trickster was hiding and finding the right cave was only Tony’s task. He totally forgot about his promise when he finally found it. “I was full of worry you were met by a great danger and got injured.”

Tony was only able to let out a nervous chuckle, his arms reciprocating the embrace shyly for a short moment before he let Thor know he wasn’t able to breathe properly. Once he could breathe normally again, he walked towards the bar to pour himself a glass of whisky. He figured Thor wouldn’t mind, and he needed more courage.

“I’m fine as you can see. Do you want a drink?” he asked without looking at his team mate as he reached for two glasses, and without waiting for a response, poured a generous amount of Jack Daniels in both. “Here you go,” he set Thor’s glass on the counter and grabbed his own, leaning with his back against one of the shelves behind him.

“Thank you, Man of Iron,” the god said, his eyes narrowed as he looked from Tony to the glass and back. “Did something happen on Jotunheim?” he asked slowly, carefully, as though he was afraid either to ask the question or hear the answer.

Tony laughed nervously again and took a big sip of his drink before he answered the question, trying to get a hold of yourself. He was sure Loki was sitting in his workshop downstairs and swearing at how bad he was doing.

“Nothing dangerous, Mean Swing, no need to worry,” he winked at Thor and tried to relax. “I guess I owe you an explanation.”

The Thunderer kept looking at him with his bright blue eyes, still full of worry and… was that guilt Tony was seeing there? Then there was a short nod followed by a barely audible sigh, and Thor drank almost whole glass at once. Stark watched him with his eyes opened wide and figured the amount of alcohol he drank in his life was a drop comparing to what Thor had to drink in his long existence.

“One would be welcome, yes,” Thor said and set the almost empty glass back on the counter.

This time, Tony was the one to sigh, and he walked forward, grabbing the bottle and pouring the alcohol into the god’s glass. “I, uh,” he started and squirmed a little, “I found Loki,” he said and looked at Thor. His eyes seemed to grow bigger at that information, but the breeding of a prince didn’t allow him to show more interest than a facial expression. “I got my revenge. He’s still alive, don’t worry about that,” he added quickly seeing how the blue eyes got glassy. “I didn’t want to kill him. I took what was mine and he sent me back.”

“He sent you back? To Midgard?” Thor asked slowly, shock more than visible. Tony could hear it in his booming voice and the way he moved on the stool he was sitting on.

“Uh, yeah,” Tony nodded, pretending he didn’t see it all. He took another sip of his whiskey and set the glass down, leaning forward on his hands. “I guess he was grateful I didn’t kill him or something like that. Why? You haven’t seen him since we split up?”

He hoped the change of subject was smooth enough otherwise he and Loki would lose the time they needed. He was doing his best to act normal, like he didn’t have the god they were both talking about in his bed every night. Thor knowing Loki was here was other thing, but him knowing about the relationship Tony had with his little brother would be a totally different thing. Thor was very protective; who knows what would happen.

“I did not,” Thor replied and his arms visibly sank. “I searched for him four days after we separated in the land of Frost Giants, but I did not find him,” he said, worry turning into fear. “Heimdall cannot see him as well. I fear something might have happened to him,” he took in a long, shaky breath and continued. “The Allfather wants him to be punished. I tried to reason with him but… He thinks what the Eternal did to Loki cannot be considered justice and my brother needs to be punished. Just like I did.”

Tony did his best not to show how angry he got from that information. Not to mention the worry about Loki. How did he react to that? It must’ve hurt, no matter what he was saying about his family. Even if he was adopted and lied to for centuries, it didn’t change the fact he was raised by Frigga and Odin, grew up with Thor among the Agardian traditions and culture. It must be hurtful for him to hear that his father still wanted him to be punished.

“And you don’t consider it the right decision?” he asked stupidly, swallowing hard as he watched Thor’s face closely.

“Of course not! I was the one who found and took Loki away from the Eternal, Anthony,” he said, and his face was twisted with pain. “You have not seen him then. All these wounds, burns… They used fire against him when he had to turn into his true form. And my brother is the God of Fire!” he almost whined in pain, the memories more for him than he could handle at the moment.

Tony winced at the mention of Thanos and Loki’s tortures. If that was Thor’s reaction, Loki’s state must’ve been really bad when he was found. Tony really started to think the god did a stupid thing when he sent him back to Earth to save him when the Chitauri found them. He still had no idea how the Trickster’s magic worked. but he hadn't had enough of it to escape himself, did he?

Stark rounded the counter, forgetting about his drink, and he wrapped an arm around Thor’s broad shoulders – an attempt to comfort him.

“He’s alright, Big Guy,” he said quietly, patting his shoulder awkwardly. “He’s probably hiding and thinking how to avoid the unnecessary punishment,” he smiled slightly, doing his best to remain Tony who’s not in love with Loki. “You know him better than anyone else, am I right?”

“Aye,” Thor replied, his voice weak and full of sadness that made Tony’s heart hurt slightly. Then the god stood up, Tony’s arm sliding down his back and he had to take a step back to regain some personal space. “I will not trouble you any longer.” Thor smiled just a little and nodded thankfully. “I am happy to see you unharmed, my friend. Thank you.”

All Tony was able to reply with was a smile as the Thunderer almost immediately walked out on the balcony, leaving the glass door open. Stark followed him, and still standing inside, watched as he started swinging his hammer and was soon up in the air, disappearing behind the dark clouds that appeared from nowhere.

He remained there, watching as the sky cleared up slowly, thinking about the visit. It showed him how sloppy he really was. He asked Thor for help in finding Loki without thinking through every possibility. Not to mention that he forgot about his promise, and he was pretty sure Asgardians kept their promises. He realized how hard of a task he had in front of himself if he wanted to keep Loki away from everyone for an unknown period of time. If he made such a serious mistake with Thor, who knows if he wouldn't spill the beans to SHIELD at some point – accidentally, of course – and they would take Loki away?

A pair of strong arms around his middle shook him out of his reverie, and he smiled softly, leaning into the body behind him with a quiet hum. He was dragged away from the window, the glass door closing automatically and a moment later he sat in Loki’s lap, head resting on his shoulder.

“That went well,” Loki murmured and kissed Tony’s temple as his fingers drew random patterns just under his ribs.

“So, you saw everything?”

Loki nodded and poked his nose into Stark’s cheek, closing his eyes as he remained in that position for a while. “I did,” he said finally and left a soft peck on Tony’s jaw line.

The engineer made himself sit up and turn in the god’s embrace, his brown eyes narrowed a little as he looked at him. He had expected a completely different reaction. “And?” he prompted and furrowed his brows when he got a short chuckle in return.

“And what, my love?” Loki asked back and shook his head slightly, his shoulder-long hair moving lightly around his face. “Are you questioning me about the conversation you had?”

Tony huffed at that. “No. I’m asking you about your—“ he stopped and thought about it for a moment. If Loki was angry at either his brother or Odin and he’s hiding it, things would not go well from here. It would probably end in another fight, and he wasn’t sure if make-up sex would be enough this time. Still, he decided to try his luck since it went pretty good with Thor. “I’m asking you about your feelings.”

Loki’s face darkened immediately, and a quiet hiss passed Tony’s lips when the long fingers dug into his skin. The god drew his arms away a second later and gently pushed Tony onto the cushions before he moved to the far end.

Tony already knew what was going on and Loki’s pose only confirmed his thoughts. He brought his long legs under his chin, wrapping his arms around them. He looked anywhere but the engineer, but mostly his gaze was directed onto the cushions just under his feet. It wasn’t as bad as Tony suspected it to be, but that didn’t mean he didn’t get worried seeing his lover like that. Slowly he moved closer to him and took Loki’s one hand in his own, kissing his knuckles gently.

What happened to him, he really had no idea. He never talked about feelings with anyone. He hated that and avoided it as much as he could, even if there was no other way to resolve some problems. He always preferred to drink his ass off and sleep until the issue didn’t go away. It had been different with Loki since the very beginning.

Maybe it was the spell at first. Maybe it was Loki who just needed someone to talk to and to help him at times with the emotions and battles inside him. When he couldn’t find anyone who would do that from their own free will he turned to more drastic ways. Not that Tony approved of this way of making people listen, but it was Loki. A demi-god. A sorcerer. What other choice did he have?

All that Tony knew now was that he wasn’t afraid of talking about someone’s feeling. Or maybe just Loki’s in particular. He still had issues when it came to himself, but whenever he saw the god troubled with something, he wanted to know what was it and if he could help in any way. And it wasn’t a freaky weird way that he was at Loki’s side in a second asking many questions that had just one meaning.

First, he waited to see if Loki would come to him himself, and if it didn’t happen until the end of the day, for example, and asked him as gently as he only could. And if Loki wanted to talk, they talked. If he didn’t, Tony waited another day or night and tried again. And Loki looking torn apart had happened really often in the last two weeks, which worried Tony more and more with every time.

“I know I have no idea how that might feel,” he started and wrinkled his nose, face twisting into a grimace of helplessness. “But you can talk to me anyway. You know you can,” he finished and kissed his knee, eyes locked on Loki’s face as he watched for any reaction.

It took a whole minute – that felt like at least a few hours to Tony – before there was any movement. Loki’s lips quirked in a small smile, and he looked at the engineer, pulling his hand away from Tony’s and cupping his cheek softly. “I am well, do not worry,” he said quietly and brushed a thumb over the other’s cheek bone. “Your question brought unwelcome thoughts, that is all.”

“Sorry,” Tony replied and smiled apologetically, unable not to lean into the touch to his face. He closed his eyes after a moment and just reveled in the feeling, Loki’s soft skin working like a better version of a sedative. “I didn’t mean to.”

He could hear Loki letting out a breathy chuckle and next thing he knew, he was surrounded by his smell and warmth. He leaned into the lean body, burying his face in the crook of the god’s neck, his own arms circled loosely around his middle. He took in a deep breath, humming at the smell and that was really enough for him; he didn’t need anything else to be happy.

“I should be the one hugging you like that, you know,” Tony mused softly and kissed the side of Loki’s neck, nuzzling it a second after.

“But it makes me calm,” Loki chuckled again, this time a little louder, and pulled the engineer onto his lap, kissing the top of his head. “The whole Nine Realms seem better when I have you in my arms,” he whispered, resting his cheek against Tony’s temple.

“That was so cliché,” Tony laughed in response, but tightened his embrace a little, leaving another soft kiss on Loki’s neck. “He loves you, you know,” he said after a moment of silence. “I can see that. Everyone can, really. He kept talking about you when we were looking for you.”

Loki’s whole body tensed, Tony could feel it with every inch of his body that touched or was close to the god. It was quiet for a long while, and Tony was pretty sure Loki wasn’t even breathing. It worried him. Not the fact he wasn’t breathing – Loki was a god, it was very possibly true he could live longer without air than humans. It’s the reaction itself. Tony knew from his own behavior that it had to still be a difficult topic for the Trickster. He wasn’t sure why he said that anyway; maybe because he still felt guilty about the broken promise and thought that at least a talk with Loki would make it okay.

“Only vile things, I suppose,” Loki finally said, but remained tensed and motionless; including breathing.

“No,” Tony almost rolled his eyes. He sat up on the god’s thighs and stared at him, his features soft as he smiled just a little. “He told me about your adventures, actually. Your tricks on people and how you loved books and staying inside. How he admired you every time you were brave enough to say no to Odin, even if it was just to make him angry,” his smile widened at the memory and he raised his hand, movements unsure, and rested it on Loki’s neck. “And how he misses you since you fell.”

“Lies,” was all he got in return, and his hand was slapped away from Loki’s cheek, the hit leaving a red mark on the back of his palm. He said nothing to that, teeth clenched as he stopped the hiss at the sudden jolt of pain, and he looked away, staring at his hand. Then Loki pushed him unceremoniously off his lap and crossed the lounge, standing in front of the glass wall. “He said to me— before you fought him after his arrival— he said to me they mourned. I could see in his eyes it was a lie. No one mourned for me. Not Thor, not Allfather and Frigga, no one.”

Tony swallowed hard but didn’t leave the couch. He stayed right where Loki left him, sitting with his legs bent at his knees and crossed at the ankles, hands lying in the middle. He watched the other constantly, frustration filling him at the fact he couldn’t see his face. But he knew it would be better for him this time to stay away, at least until Loki calms down.

“You don’t know that,” he said instead, voice quiet and shy as he felt a bit scared at what might come after that.

Loki laughed bitterly, and his whole body tensed again, hands curling into fists. “And you do, Stark? I am the God of Lies, do not forget. I can see when I’m being lied to.”

“That’s not what I meant. Thor is… he probably didn’t want to make you feel bad, that’s why he lied. But I am more than sure he mourned for you. And even if he was the only one, than what? He loves you, Loki. And he wants his brother back.”

“I am not his brother!”

Tony jumped in his spot at the sound of Loki’s raised voice, the tone sending shivers down his spine. It was a miracle, really, that there was no hole in the glass in front of the god. Tony’s hand would surely bleed already if he felt what the Trickster did right now. He wanted to get close to him, to make him feel better, but the scream paralyzed him and he couldn’t move his limbs, fear now slowly coursing in his blood.

That’s when Loki turned around and looked at him, his deep green eyes filled with rage and pain. It didn’t disappear even when he walked back to the couch, and it just made Tony shiver slightly. He was afraid; everyone would be if they saw _this_ kind of expression on someone’s face. His whole body screamed for him to run away from the god as far as it was possible, but it would inevitably hurt him, so the engineer stayed in place against all of his instincts.

He stayed no matter the fact he shuddered all over, looking down – away from Loki’s eyes so he wouldn’t see how scared he really was. He was breathing slow and steady, trying to calm himself enough to get rid of all the unwelcome sensations. He couldn’t see Loki stretch his hand in his direction so he jumped when he felt the soft skin on his own, cursing under his nose when he realized what just happened.

“I will not hurt you,” he heard Loki’s weak, sad voice and all he was able to do in return is nod – to let him know he heard. “I could not.”

“I know, Loki,” he replied after a moment and shook his head, doing his best to smile as he found the courage to look up at the god. “It’s okay, really.”

He winced at the look on Loki’s face and turned his gaze away, feeling as though someone stabbed him in the heart. He stood up and walked away to his bar, grabbing his forgotten glass of whiskey and downing it in one quick gulp. He poured himself some more and took a smaller sip this time, staring down at the counter.

He had no idea how to get out of this situation. If he kept talking he would just make everything worse and pissing Loki off more was not what he wanted to do. Like, ever. Unluckily, he couldn’t just leave either; it would hurt Loki too much and it was the last thing Tony wanted to cause. He never wanted to see him hurt anymore, especially if he was to be the cause of it.

He more heard than saw the movements in front of him, and when he tilted his head up slightly he saw Loki sitting on the same stool Thor sat at not such a long time ago. He took in a deep breath and took another sip of his drink before he moved to get the clean glass. Without the need to ask, he turned and grabbed the bottle of some Italian red wine, pouring some into the glass and placing in front of the god. He removed Thor’s tumbler on the way and put it into the sink before he finally decided it was enough of his cowardice.

“I didn’t want to upset you,” he muttered, sure Loki would hear him anyway and straightened up, still standing by the sink, his hands resting on both sides of it. “I’m sorry. It’s not my business what’s between you and your— and Thor.”

The Trickster just sat motionlessly, his green eyes locked on the glass of wine standing in front of him. Tony watched closely; he wanted to say something more but really had no idea what would be appropriate enough at this moment. So he remained quiet, looking for any sign of emotion on Loki’s pale face, in the way he moved or really didn’t move. Tony was pretty sure he wasn’t breathing again and that fact made his heart beat a little faster.

That was the moment Loki’s hand jerked up from his lap and moved to grab the glass and stir the almost black liquid inside it. “Your heart. It beats stronger. Are you afraid?” His voice was soft and barely above a whisper, but the room was so quiet at that point nothing would escape Tony’s ears. Well, maybe not nothing, but he would recognize Loki’s voice anywhere and at any time so…

“No,” he chuckled shortly, and even he could hear the nervousness in his voice. “I’m just— confused, I guess,” he frowned slightly and rubbed at the back of his neck. “I don’t know what to do.”

Loki finally looked up at him, his poker face driving Tony crazy at this point. “You could sit by my side,” he said, his voice still quiet. He stretched his long, lean arm into Stark direction, eyes shining with something Tony recognized as longing. An apologetic smile spread on his lips, and he took the god’s hand, moving around the bar and sitting on the stool next to him. “Much better,” Loki commented and slowly, cautiously leaned in, staring right into Tony’s eyes before he kissed him softly.

Tony’s heart fluttered in his chest, and his hand raised to rest on Loki’s shoulder to keep him close, not push away. He kissed back, letting him know it was okay and couldn’t stop a smile when Loki deepened the kiss slightly, his tongue ghosting over Tony’s lips.

“I love you, Anthony,” the god muttered after pulling away slightly, his cool hand resting on the engineer’s cheek. “I will never let anything happen to you, I give you my word.”

Tony just chuckled again, lightly this time and pecked Loki’s lips again. “I know, Loki. I just thought I might help and…” he shrugged, waving his hands helplessly. “I just don’t understand why you’re angry at _him_.”

“You know my story,” Loki said slowly, his voice a little louder than before. It’s like he was set to get angry whenever the topic returned. “You know they have lied to me, Tony.”

“No, not they. He,” Tony pointed, unable to stop himself. “Odin lied to you. Thor had no idea about it, just like you.”

Loki huffed in anger and stood up, circling the stool before he walked back to the couch. He stood there for a while with his back turned. Tony couldn’t see his face, and he was starting to grow scared again. But he decided that if he started this, he should finish it. They would go through that conversation at some point anyway. The anger seemed to eat Loki from the inside, and sadness along with heartbreak helped with that. It wasn’t healthy to hide feelings like that, Stark was one of the examples. Not to mention how many times Pepper told him that when they were still together. And before that, too, but Tony never was the one to listen.

“You think I should forgive him, then?”

“Loki, there’s really nothing _to_ forgive. Not to Thor, at least,” Tony replied and stood up himself, making a few steps towards Loki. “It wasn’t Thor who lied to you.”

“It is not just about that, Stark,” Loki huffed again and that’s where Tony realized things would just go awfully wrong from then on. “Thor was always the one better than me. No matter what I did to make Odin proud, his son’s deeds were more welcome. It—“

“Wait, wait. Stop right there, Loki,” Tony cut him off knowing very well how it would end. For all it was worth, he didn’t want to be thrown out of his own window again. “Still not Thor’s fault,” he pointed his finger at the Trickster for a split second, wincing at the expression on Loki’s lean face. “It wasn’t his fault Odin favored him over you. Maybe he shouldn’t have been so cocky about it, yes, but I think he had realized his mistake after, you know, his exile.”

“You’re favoring him,” Loki breathed out in disbelief, the pain on his face visible only for a blink of an eye. It was enough to make Tony’s heart beat faster, his wince deepening as he walked quickly towards the god.

“No, of course not. God, Loki,” he muttered incoherently and grabbed the Trickster’s hands, pulling him close. “I do not favor him. I’m just trying to tell you your anger towards him doesn’t make any sense. To me,” he added quickly and watched his lover’s expression for what seemed like hours.

Finally, Loki let out a short breath and took a step back, pulling his hands out of Tony’s embrace. “No sense,” he repeated flatly, his eyes glistening with something Tony could only describe as pain and betrayal. This was not what he wanted to achieve, and he was opening his mouth to say anything that would make things even a little better; something that would push away these feelings from Loki’s eyes, but before he was able to make any sound, the god just turned on his heels and walked out.

Tony remained in his spot, eyes locked on the wall Loki disappeared behind and he just couldn’t believe this ended up like that. _How did that happen?_

“JARVIS?” Tony asked after a long while, when he walked towards the bar to grab his whiskey.

“Yes, sir?”

“Is he still in the Tower?”

There was a moment of silence, and Tony could swear he would have a heart attack soon, but before it came to that he heard his AI again. “Yes, sir. Master Loki is in your bedroom.”

“Does it look like he’s going anywhere?”

“No, sir.”

“Thank God,” Tony mumbled and fell onto his couch, spilling a few droplets of his drink on himself. “Inform me if something happens, yeah?”

“Yes, sir.”

Tony took a long gulp from his tumbler and stared at the blank TV screen, trying to figure out how to make things right again. It won’t be easy with Loki, that he was more than sure of, but he knew he needed to do something. Loki wouldn’t be the one to try it, especially if he felt betrayed. He heard enough of his stories to know betrayal was the worst thing to him.

He let out a heavy sigh, cursing loudly at himself, head resting on the backrest as he closed his eyes, unaware that the very god he was so worried about stood in the doorway and watched him with a small wince.

* * *

Tony spent the night on the couch, waking up with a horrible neck ache, not to mention a small hangover from the amount of whiskey he actually drank. He fell asleep only when the sun started to rise, covering his face with a really not that soft pillow so the light wouldn’t hurt his eyes. He woke up not such a long time later to the sound of an alarm clock JARVIS was programmed to set off whenever there was something important to do and Tony was still sleeping.

As much as he wanted to go and talk with Loki, he couldn’t do that. Pepper informed him about some really serious problem at the company that she couldn’t handle alone, and Tony had to get a hold of himself before he descended to the floors he gave away to the company. If Pepper couldn’t handle the problem, it really had to be something hard and complicated; there was not many things she couldn’t do.

And so Tony woke up wasted, went for his bedroom with his eyes half closed and noticed Loki was gone just after he came out of the bathroom with a towel around his hips, his hair dripping with water. His heart started beating faster at the thought the god actually left, and he had to get a hold of the nearest wall so he wouldn’t collapse.

“JARVIS, where’s Loki?” he managed to get out as he tried to push his fingers into the wall, quickened breathing making him unable to hold on on his legs.

“He’s in your laboratory, sir. Shall I call him?”

Tony let out a long sigh of relief, sliding down the wall as he tried to calm his racing heart. He chuckled softly, realizing how much he was in love with Loki and how just the thought of him going out and being spotted by someone who wasn’t his friend – which meant practically everyone – terrified him. He shook his head and rested his elbows on his knees, head tilting back as he softly hit the wall.

“No, don’t. I just needed to know. You were supposed to inform me about this stuff,” he said and got up, still breathing a little heavy as he stepped into his wardrobe.

“I am sorry, sir, but you were sleeping and then Miss Potts called and I decided her request was of a greater urgency.”

“Send me a text then,” Tony said as he went wondered if he was supposed to wear a suit or just t-shirt and old jeans. Pepper didn’t really tell JARVIS what kind of problem it was. He figured suits was better since he could always come back and change if it was something that would require that. And so he grabbed the nearest suit and started pulling it on. “I wanna know every time when he’s changing the room. And if you think he’s about to leave. In fact inform him I’ll be gone for an hour or two,” he said as he pulled one of the ties he thought fitted his dress up.

“I’m doing so as we speak, sir,” JARVIS replied almost immediately, which brought a small smile to Tony’s lips – he loved when his AI did that.

“Great. Just remember to keep me posted,” Tony said as he walked out of their bedroom and started walking towards the elevator, grabbing his phone on the way.

A few minutes later and he was at the right floor, heading for Pepper’s office. He smiled at her secretary, who smiled back at him without even trying to stop him. Being Tony Stark had its advantages from time to time. He knocked on the door, and without waiting for an answer, stepped inside as he usually did, a small smile still present on his lips.

“Miss Potts, so nice to finally see you,” he greeted her and his smile faded as soon as he saw her expression. She looked conflicted and… worried. “What happened? Something’s with the company?” he asked even before he reached her desk.

“No, it’s not about the company,” she replied, her voice quieter then Tony remembered it to be the last time they’ve talked.

“Then what is it?”

“You better sit down,” Pepper gestured at the chair and leaned in her own. Tony could see she was chewing on the next words she was about to speak, and he obeyed, knowing that it wouldn't do any good if he started asking the same questions again. “Miss Romanoff came to see me earlier today,” she said slowly, looking straight into Tony’s eyes.

The engineer’s heart stopped for a short second and then started beating even faster than before. If it wasn’t for the fact he was deadly worried about Loki and the reason Natasha came to see Pepper, he would surely think he'd die of a heart attack soon.

“What did she want?” he asked, trying not to show how nervous about the whole situation he really was.

He had to fail miserably since Pepper gave him a soft look, almost stretching a hand in his direction over the desktop. She stopped the second she realized what she was doing and instead decided to pretend she wanted to move some papers on her desk.

“It’s about you. And your… guest,” she said slowly, not looking at him this time.

“Guest?” Tony asked, playing a fool, really, because it was obvious she knew what was going on in his private floors even if she wasn’t there for a long time. “What guest?”

“A Norse god, very likely,” came Natasha’s voice from behind him and Tony grabbed himself by the front of his shirt, panting heavily. “Sorry, didn’t mean to give you a heart attack.”

“Yeah, right,” Tony breathed out and watched as Agent Romanoff in her casual wear walked around the desk to stand at Pepper’s side.

They both watched him closely, but Pepper turned her gaze away as soon as the engineer looked at her. It made him uncomfortable and sad. It was all his fault, he knew that, and he accepted the fact it would take some time before Pepper forgave him for dumping her for Loki. He needed her and her friendship, and the fact she still couldn’t look him in the eye for longer than few seconds made him feel like the biggest asshole in the world. But he probably was one after the way she found out about everything.

“You need to be more careful, Stark. SHIELD still uses your and Bruce’s technology you both used when tracking Loki,” Natasha said after a moment of silence. “They tracked him down yesterday.”

“They— what?” Tony mumbled and stared at her with mix of shock and fright.

“I don’t know what you’re up to, but I trust you’re doing the right thing. Don’t ask why,” Natasha said quickly and leaned forward, resting her hands on the desktop. “They saw him by the window of your apartment, Tony. Somehow I managed to convince them it was a mistake since the percentage was low, but I’m not stupid,” she said and looked at Stark with her eyes deadly serious right now. “Watch yourself. I won’t save your ass next time. I might not be able to.”

Tony just stared back at her, his expression unchanging even when she said goodbye to Pepper and left the office. It took him some time to actually process what just happened, and it really didn’t help him in this situation. He was still fucking terrified.

Then he heard Pepper clear her throat and he shook his head, blinking once before he finally looked at her. She was still avoiding his gaze, but at least she didn’t have this heartbreaking expression on her face. That still didn’t stop him from realizing what was about to come next.

“Pep, I—“

“You could have told me,” she cut him off, eyes locked on the small stack of papers in front of her. “I’m not some vengeful hag to grass my ex-boyfriend up to authorities. I know you— love him, I wouldn’t do that to you,” she said, her voice breaking at the last words.

He knew they would have that conversation sooner or later. It just wasn’t a right moment to have it. Not with the info Natasha just gave him and Loki not speaking to him. They couldn’t pick a worse moment for that, but Tony knew at the same time he couldn’t post pone it any longer, too. The quicker, the better. Right?

“It’s not like that,” he said slowly thinking over every word he spoke. “I know you’re not like that. I’m just— You know I’m a coward. I was too afraid to face you and see how you might be doing and I didn’t want to… throw down more on you…”

Pepper laughed, shortly and a little bitterly but laughed nevertheless. Tony couldn’t help but frown at the reaction, unable to tell what it in what he just said that caused it. He really wanted to ask, and he probably would if the circumstances were different, but decided to just watch her this time, sure she would explain herself eventually. And he wasn’t wrong.

“Tony, I worked for you. I was dealing with all your crazy stuff over the years. Do you think I can’t handle the knowledge you have a villain under your roof?” she said calmly, her voice shaking barely audibly at the last words.

The engineer thought about for a moment. She was right. She probably went through all kinds of crazy shit while working for him. She dealt with his delusions, too. But that? A Norse God, still a villain in the eye of Earth authority and every citizen of New York for sure? He started having doubts himself if he could handle that – mostly because he and Loki weren’t speaking to each other. Seriously, who could handle something like that? Yes, Pepper was stronger than him when it came to handling things, but she broke eventually because there was too many of them. Tony really didn’t want to tell her the guy he dumped her for was now living him. Especially since she knew who he was.

“Well, to be honest, that’s exactly what I thought,” he admitted a little embarrassed, twisting his fingers nervously on his lap. “This is a whole new level of crazy, even on my scale. Not to mention the way you found out about him. I wanted to wait, I guess,” he said slowly with a small shrug.

Pepper winced at the memory of just after Tony’s comeback from the month under Loki’s control. All was okay until he said his name and then… things with Pepper fell apart. He still hoped – maybe stupidly – that they would be friends again. Pepper had been in his life too long to just push her away. Even for Loki. They had known each other for so long, she knew everything about him. He still needed her in his life. He was greedy, and he didn’t want to lose something he had in small amounts in his life.

“Maybe you’re right,” she replied quietly after a long moment, eyes still locked on the desk. “I was thinking about us. The whole time after we— broke up and until now,” she added quietly, totally out of the blue if Tony was concerned and he just opened his eyes in slight surprise. Fear, too. If she mentioned _that_ , it basically meant she made a decision. And all that Tony could think about was _what if she decides to leave?_ “I thought this through so many times, I think my head should have exploded long time ago.”

Tony still kept quiet, smiling just a little at the joke, this way of trying to lightened the atmosphere in the room isn’t really working with Pepper. That’s not how she used to do that. That only told Tony she was scared of telling him what she decided, which just caused his heart to beat faster again.

Now he was fucking terrified.

“So,” Tony cleared his throat, trying to get rid of the lump that suddenly appeared in his gulp. “What did you— think out?” he asked, fear of the answer filling every word.

Pepper looked at him with her eyebrows raised, and by the look on her face she seemed to know why Tony was scared. She had to figure this out since she smiled softly, biting down onto her bottom lip a little, the way Tony remembered her to when it always came to him. It was familiar, and he calmed down for a short moment, the corners of his lips raising in a soft smile he shot back at her. But then he remembered what he was about to hear. and he couldn’t keep the smile on his face.

His heart rate spiked again, fingers clenched on the armrest of his seat, knuckles turning white. He was sure that if he’d let go of them, his hands would be horribly shaking. And he hated that.

“Well, first of all, I decided that love makes you crazy,” she smiled a little wider. “I thought you were pretty insane before, but going on another planet? That’s out of my head,” she commented and looked at Tony, maintaining the eye contact. He saw how hard it was for her to talk about this, how she swallowed hard every few seconds and how she was constantly tugging her hair behind her ear. “Second, I don’t want our friendship to be gone after so many years,” she said slowly, her smile turning soft and tight at the same time. “I’m still not sure if I can forgive— but I want to keep our friendship.”

Tony listened to her with a heavy heart, the lump in his throat only growing bigger when Pepper finished. He should have seen it coming, really. If he was in her place, he was sure he would kick himself in the ass and throw out so he wouldn’t see the face that caused him so much pain. And yet, Pepper decided to give them a chance. Because it was a chance, the fact she was ready to try and keep the friendship they had and built for so many years no matter the fact she still couldn’t forgive… That really meant a lot to Tony and he really wasn’t able to vocalize how happy and grateful he was for having someone like her in his life. She was always reasonable with everything. He needed that.

“Thank you, Pepper,” he said in a husky voice, swallowing down to get rid of the lump. “You have no idea how much this means to me.”

He barely finished the sentence when he felt vibrations in his pocket and he jumped slightly in his seat, this whole time oblivious he had his phone with him.

“Something happened?” Pepper asked alarmed, when Tony took it out quickly and read the text. “Is it SHIELD?”

 Tony shook his head and smiled a little bitterly, seeing JARVIS’ message. The AI did as it was ordered to – he got the info whenever Loki moved to another room in his apartment. Tony sighed heavily and pushed his phone back into the pocket of his suit pants and looked up at Pepper, shrugging lazily.

“No. No SHIELD,” he tried to smile, but he was sure it turned out to be as bitter as the last one. Pepper tilted her head slightly to the side and watched Tony for a moment, her eyes almost like x-rays. He felt like she was reading his mind.

“Stop that,” he muttered and looked down.

There was a soft snort, followed by another heavy sigh, and he could hear his friend stand up from her armchair and walk around the desk only to sit on the edge of it right in front of him.

“Something happened between you two?” she asked softly, her voice barely audible. It was almost like a whisper, and if it wasn’t for the fact Tony was listening closely to every sound she made, he wouldn’t hear it.

Tony rubbed at his forehead as he winced, standing up from his chair. “Yeah, something happened. But I’ll take care of it,” he said slowly and shot her a small smile. “If that’s all, I need to go and— talk to him.”

Pepper smiled back at him, the gesture more sincere than Tony would suspect it to be, and he couldn’t stop the small bubble of happiness from growing in his chest slowly. He was damn lucky that she picked the friendship and not everlasting hate. He deserved the hate if he had to be honest with himself.

“Yes, it’s all,” she said and straightened up before she started going back to her armchair. “Call me if you need someone to talk with,” she said and sat down, pulling herself closer and opening the laptop on the top of the desk. She then raised her gaze again and looked at Tony, smiling softly and tightly at the same time. “I’d like to meet him officially, too. One day.”

He knew how much it took for her to say that and the bubble swelled even more, making him take a deep breath. What did he do to deserve a friend like her?

“One day, I promise,” he said in return and nodded once, before turning on his heel and walking out of the office.

The walk to the elevator and then the ride up to his private floor was the longest trip he ever had in his life. He felt like it, at least. He knew that as soon as the elevator opened and Loki saw him, he would be ignored at best. And that was out of the question for him since he really needed to talk to the god. Natasha’s unexpected visit and the fact they weren’t talking was just driving him crazy already. Pepper’s decision made him feel better just for a short period of time – as soon as he got the text everything feel into place and the reality of his situation hit him again.

They needed to be more careful. That didn’t mean just avoiding the windows and keeping them dimmed 24/7. That Tony – and he hoped that Loki, too – would work with, why not. He spent a big part of his life in his workshop in Malibu without windows, and when they finally appeared he kept them covered most of the time.

The worst part of this whole situation was that Loki would be just locked down even more now. It probably already felt like prison for him, and now it would just get even worse and Tony wouldn’t be surprised if the Trickster just decided to run and hide on his own, somewhere on Jotunheim again, perhaps.

The thought itself made Tony edgy, and his heart ached. He didn’t want to lose Loki. Not when everything seemed to be going well now. They had Natasha on their side for some unknown reason. He was sure she wasn’t just playing to get the information out of him. Because if she did they were already doomed, and it really would be better for Loki to disappear.

The door of the elevator slid open, and he pulled out his phone, checking if there were new messages about Loki’s whereabouts. When there was nothing, he read the one he had gotten down in the office, and he slowly and quietly made his way towards their bedroom. He knew Loki would hear him no matter what, but he just didn’t like going in loud and fast like he mostly did it.

The door was open, and he stopped in the doorway, his gaze falling on Loki.

He was sitting at the head of the bed, his legs crossed Indian style and back resting against the headboard. He was reading something, but from this distance Tony couldn’t see what book it was. He looked so relaxed and at peace, his eyes wandering from left to right on the page, oblivious to everything that was going on around him. At least, that’s what Tony thought.

He wasn’t able to watch him long, because after a moment Loki raised his head and looked straight at him, his face blank and eyes dark with something Tony couldn’t place, but he figured he just denied to still see the betrayal there.

“Something happened,” Loki said quietly and straightened up a little when Tony just nodded. “What is it?”

Tony sighed and tugged at his tie, loosening it a bit as he walked towards the bed and sat on the edge, Loki still sitting on the other side. He rubbed at his face and frowned, staring down at the fresh covers.

“Natasha was here,” he started, and he could see from the corner of his eyes that Loki tensed immediately. “I don’t why she’d doing it, but she seems to be covering our asses,” he said slowly, absent-mindedly scratching at the covers. “SHIELD is still using the program me and Banner created to find you before the Battle, and they tracked you down yesterday. Probably when you walked toward the window after Thor left.”

Tony finally looked up and was surprised to see that Loki was sitting on his heels right next to him. He was wearing his deep green V-neck and black jeans, his hair pulled to the back as usual. He looked at Tony with worry, brows furrowed slightly as he tugged at his tie and pulled it off of the engineer’s neck slowly, placing it on the covers next to them.

“You’re not mad at me anymore?” Tony asked slowly with his eyes locked on the Trickster’s face.

He felt the cool hands sliding up his chest, under the jacket and onto his shoulder only to push it down and off, leaving it lying behind his back. Loki waited a while with the answer, undoing the buttons of Tony’s white shirt slowly, one by one, giving it more focus than it was needed.

“I’m not,” he answered and finally locked his eyes with Tony’s, smiling in a way that could only be apologetic. “I think I’m getting… paranoid, as you say,” he shrugged and cupped Tony’s cheek, the engineer leaning more than eagerly into the touch. “I’m sorry. I do not want to lose you, but— I need some time to grow familiar with the fact you and Thor are mates,” he explained, his tone suggesting that he was ashamed of yesterday’s actions.

Tony couldn’t help but smile with relief. Not only because there was no anger and hate in the way Loki spoke the Thunderer’s name. It was more about the fact he had his Loki back again. Without another word, he pulled the god onto his lap, arms wrapping around his lean waist and face buried in his neck, breathing in the smell he only now realized that he missed as much as the source of it.

“It’s okay,” Tony mumbled against his skin and kissed the spot where he could feel the pulse against his lips. “I’m not completely without the blame here myself,” he smiled a little and pulled away enough to have a good look at Loki. “I missed you.”

Loki chuckled and planted a kiss on Tony’s nose, his lips gentle and careful, as thought he was scared he would break the engineer. “I have missed you, too, my love,” he replied and Tony could feel his hands sliding under his shirt.

* * *

He was stupid. Very stupid. Tony was right about Thor. He did nothing wrong, he just was the one the Allfather showed affection to more eagerly and openly. He might have even loved his real son more. Loki always had better contact with Frigga, anyway. She was the one who pushed him into studying magic when she saw he didn’t enjoy practicing fighting skills and acknowledging the many ways how to kill a man, an Aesir and a beast.

Yet, it still hurt him. Somehow, the fact Thor considered him his brother no matter the things Loki had done… It made him feel worse. After yesterday’s fight with Tony – it was a fight since Loki couldn’t find other word for it – he started thinking when he was left alone.

Of course, it was none of Thor’s fault. He couldn’t help the way he was raised at the beginning. He had no idea how he acted until he landed in a realm where everyone were more or less equal, where  there was no throne to inherit. Midgard had its way of turning Norse Gods into better people, Loki figured. Or maybe it was all about the right Midgardians.

Either way, he tried to rationalize with himself and his emotions. He couldn’t be mad at Thor for things and lies his father created. And to think it took one Tony Stark and a few sentences to show how blinded by his anger Loki was. The need for revenge hid the rationality from him, even when he was trying to redeem himself.

When he woke up the next day, he wandered around the floor, looking for Tony to talk to him. He wanted to apologize for his foolishness, for being a silly child that he had acted like for the last months. He knew he had a lot of apologies to make. After all, he was busy the whole time after finding out the truth. Tony was a good start. He needed Tony to keep him on the right path and have a chance to make these apologies.

Loki found him sleeping on the couch, the empty tumbler – the very same he saw him drink out of last night – lying on the black cushions next to him. Loki was sure Tony would at least go back to his lab and sleep on the couch there if he didn’t want to sleep with him. He left the room before the engineer fell asleep and he really hoped for him to go back to their bedroom anyway.

The god stood over Tony for a long moment, debating if he should wake him up or just sit and wait for him to open his eyes without anyone’s help. At the end he decided it was better to wait, and he took the elevator down to the lab, sitting in his usual armchair and thinking about everything over and over. By the time he came back on the private floor, Tony was gone.

He had no idea where and why, but he knew that Tony would be back either way. He didn’t want to ask JARVIS, he’d prefer not to know when Tony was supposed to get back. He preferred to sit, read perhaps, and keep his mind off of the bad things while he had the time. He knew he didn’t have much of it left.

It wasn’t even half an hour later when he heard the elevator doors slide open and familiar footsteps resounded on the whole floor. He smiled softly and kept reading “Midsummer’s Night Dream” even when he saw Tony stand in the doorway of their bedroom. He realized there was something odd about him and he looked up, the expression on the engineer’s face making his heart beat faster. He listened and watched as Tony came closer and sat on the bed, not looking at Loki until he finished.

Loki shivered at the small kiss a few minutes later, his hands resting on Tony’s abdomen before he moved onto his sides and back, arms now wrapped around his waist. He looked at Tony biting down on his bottom lip, seeing the touch made the engineer shiver.

“And you deserve a proper apology,” Loki said, voice barely above a whisper before he planted a soft kiss at the corner of Tony’s lips, tongue darting out to lick at the outline.

He could hear Tony’s heart beating faster, feel the shiver that ran down his spine, skin slowly turning warmer under his touch. He smirked slightly against the other’s lips and sucked at the bottom lip, switching his position at the same time. He straddled Tony’s lap and pushed him down after his hands moved at his chest, resting on both sides of the arc reactor.

Loki placed a soft kiss just above the device, lips ghosting over the scar before he kissed his way to Tony’s lips, kissing him sweetly. He could feel the hands on his hips, fingers sliding under the hem of his shirt and moving slowly up his sides, the touch of the calloused skin making him shiver all over.

“We need to work,” Tony breathed out, but Loki wasn’t listening to him. Hel, Tony sounded like he didn’t believe his own words himself.

His hands kept moving up Loki’s sides and onto his chest, fingertips teasing his nipples and making him gasp as they hardened almost immediately under the touch. Loki started planting soft kisses all over Tony’s face, hips starting to roll as his body demanded the needed friction. Another gasp left both of their lips, and the Trickster leaned down for a needy kiss, his tongue darting out moments before the kiss started.

He pushed it inside Tony’s mouth, licking at the roof and wrapping it around the other’s tongue, the contact making him moan, quietly and shortly. Gods, how he loved kissing this man.

Tony flipped them on the bed, kneeling in between Loki’s legs as the god lay splayed in front of him. His hands roamed over his chest, the V-neck lifted up to his chin, lips soon joining in. A gasp left Loki each time he could feel ~~t~~ eeth scrapping over his skin and a tongue licking at the right spots. One suck at his nipple made him shiver all over, the action repeated to the other one with the same result. His long fingers were fisted on the brown locks, and pulling every time Tony’s smart mouth made him feel good.

Loki could spend forever like this. Splayed underneath Tony, feeling his lips and tongue all over his skin, the shivers running through him almost every second. He had forgotten the last time someone paid so much attention to him during sex. It was always about getting what they wanted, not caring about his needs.

With Tony, it was different from the very beginning – maybe because of the spell, but it didn’t change as it wore off and Stark was himself again. He still treated Loki like the most precious thing he owned, always so gentle with the foreplay.

The hard kiss pulled him back into reality, a bite on his bottom lip making him squirm a little before he kissed back, fingers pulling at Tony’s hair a little too hard in revenge. He could feel the other smiling, and he couldn’t help but do the same as they kissed. In the meantime, his hands moved on Tony’s chest and down, fiddling with the belt buckle, undoing it in less than a second. Another few seconds and the fly and the button were undone as well, and Loki turned them both on the bed, so he was on top again.

He pushed the pants as far down as he could, finishing the job with his leg, only to press a knee to Tony’s slowly hardening cock. The action earned him a breathy moan, the sound almost like music to his ears. He pressed further, just a little bit more. and a louder moan filled the room this time and his smirk widened with it.

He leaned forward, biting on Tony’s bottom lip again, his tongue flipping over the upper one before he moved down, kissing at every vein he felt under his lips. He paid special attention to the scar around the arc reactor, the skin there more sensitive. He felt the shivers running through Tony’s body with each kiss planted close to the device. Loki hoped it was all because it felt so good and not because of fear and worry. It was hard to tell now, when it should be obvious his heart was beating so fast because of the excitement, but Loki would never be sure. Unless he finally asked him.

His tongue flicked over Tony’s nipple and he sucked it into his mouth, teasing with his teeth and the tip of his tongue, the hand in his hair letting him know he was going a good job. Soon he moved to the other nipple, licking on the scar under the arc reactor, repeating the action while Tony’s gasps turned into quiet moans.

Loki pulled away for a moment, his shirt flying in the air behind him to fall inaudibly onto the floor, his lips pressing against Tony’s one more time, the engineer’s hands fiddling with his zipper. Loki smiled into the kiss, the other’s tongue pushing in between them almost immediately, the kiss lingering on the border of desperate from Tony’s side. It would make the Trickster smirk if it wasn’t for the fact he had a tongue down his throat.

Tony’s hands pushed Loki’s jeans down his thighs, and the god had to use one hand to push them past his knees before he wiggled out of them completely. The kiss deepened even more in the meantime, Tony’s muffled moans filling their bedroom.

Loki hooked Stark’s leg over his own waist, finding the tube of lube they’ve abandoned under the pillows few nights ago. His hips rolled, and this time they both moaned at the friction, their cocks rubbing against each other with every move either of them made. It was harder and harder for Loki to control himself, the sounds and sensations turning him on even more than the fact he was about to take his lover. He loved listening to Tony’s moans and cries of pleasure, the sound of the man’s voice often making him come faster than he would from the act itself.

The trickster kneeled above him, squeezing the lube on his fingers and spreading it so each digit was covered, everything without breaking the kiss even for a second. He teased at Tony’s rim, fingertip drawing small circles around it, sending the shivers through the whole body underneath him. He couldn’t help but smirk at that again.

The teasing continued for a short moment, Tony swearing right into Loki’s mouth, impatience audible in his voice. Not to mention how his hands pulled at Loki’s hair a little harder than usual. Loki pulled away from the kiss and looked down at his lover only to see the most childish pout he had ever seen. Even Thor wasn’t so child-like at his worse. But then, Loki never seen him having sex, thank the Gods.

Loki licked teasingly at the tip of his nose, and the second Tony’s tongue was about to form words, he pushed his first finger inside, all the way up to his knuckles. The sensation made Tony arch his back for a short moment, a wince twisting his face but the god knew it was all from pleasure – Stark was already stretched enough he could push two fingers in easily. But what was the fun if he didn’t tease him a little bit before they both found their release?

“You fucking tease,” Tony mumbled as he fell back onto the bed, his fingers combing gently through Loki’s long hair. “I’ll get my revenge,” he panted and pressed palm of one hand against the nape of the Trickster’s nape to pull him down for a passionate kiss.

Loki just kissed back with as much eagerness and need, finger moving in and out a few times before he pressed the second one in, scissoring his lover’s rim almost immediately. Tony gasped right into his mouth, biting down on Loki’s bottom lip before he sucked it in, tongue moving over it slowly.

He could feel both of them were already painfully hard, and he couldn’t wait but feel the tight warmth of Tony around himself. He felt it so many times already but it was like an addiction: the more he had it, the more he craved for it.

Tony rolled his hips up, gasping again when the movements made the stretching more painful, but Loki figured it was all worth it for him since he could feel their cocks rubbing against each other. He barely managed to stop his own moan. He deepened the kiss they both still shared, and his tongue wrapped around Stark’s, making it impossible for him to let out any coherent sound.

The fingers did a magnificent job, because so far there was no hint that it was painful to the other. Being a god had its perks at times, but Loki wanted his magic back more in this kind of moments. He wanted to make Tony feel the same as he did. The temperature of his body rising, heart beating faster and skipping a bit at a particularly pleasant caress, the orgasm. All of it and so much more. Loki wanted to share it all with him the way he never got to do with anyone before.

“Baby, please—“ he heard Tony’s strained voice, and he opened his eyes, pulling away an inch to have  a good look at him. And Gods, he looked like a miracle with his eyes almost black with need, cheeks flushed and lips swollen from all the kisses they have shared so far. “I need you.”

The sound of his voice made Loki shiver all over, and he decided he wasn’t about to make them both wait as the third finger worked its way inside. The god pulled his hand away from Tony’s ass, squeezing a generous amount of lube of his palm, his eyes locked on Tony’s all the time. He knew the procedure so well by now, he could do it with his eyes blindfolded.

He stroked himself a few times, a low groan escaping his lips, and he straightened up, grabbing on Tony’s knees and pulling him closer on the bed. Tony almost immediately wrapped his legs around Loki’s waist and bit down on his bottom lip as he watched the pale man position himself at his entrance. As soon as he felt the tip probing at his entrance, his eyes fluttered shut, heart beating faster in anticipation.

Loki could feel and hear it all, and he took a moment to savor it before he started pushing in, lips parting at the sensation of tight muscles letting him in, inch by inch. Each time was just as good as the last one with Tony – if not better – and this was no different. He fought to keep his eyes open, looking down at his lover as he writhed and grabbed at the sheets, fighting the urge to move his hips and take Loki all the way in at once. He did that so many times already; so impatient.

They both moaned when Loki was finally buried balls deep inside him, leaning down for a moment as he let Tony adjust to the stretch. He kissed up his chest softly, leaving wet trials as he was making his way to the open mouth. Once he reached it, he kissed at each corner and licked at the outline of Tony’s lips.

“You are my world,” he mouthed against his cheek and moved back to plant a needy kiss, his hips rolling just the slightest, but the movement still made Tony moan.

He received no answer, no touch, nothing that would made him think Tony felt the same. All he received was a small quirk of the other’s lips and a small sigh, but it was enough for him. He couldn’t stop his own smile as he started slowly pulling away, his forehead resting against Tony’s. He kept looking into his eyes, not wanting to miss any emotion and sensation that would show up there. He wanted to see it all.

Loki pulled out almost completely, the head only thing that was left inside and he stopped for a moment, enjoying the teasing. Then he slammed back, going deep again and both of them moaned in pleasure, the movement sending shivers through their bodies. This time Loki didn’t wait. He set a slow steady pace, small pants leaving his lips every time he pushed in.

“God, I love your dick,” Tony breathed out at one particularly hard thrust, his back arching up as his grip on the sheets tightened for a short second. Loki just chuckled inaudibly and flicked his tongue over his lover’s earlobe.

His hands rested on Tony’s hips, holding tightly ad he began thrusting stronger and deeper. The tight heat around him made him get lost in the movements, his hips setting on the right angle simultaneously. He wasn’t even aware he was hitting the right spot inside Tony when a louder moan filled the room at one of his thrusts. He looked at the man underneath him and couldn’t stop staring in awe at the way his face twisted in pure pleasure.

He stayed at the angle from that moment, trying his best to reach it every time. He wasn’t as successful as he wanted to be, but it was still enough to make Tony moan louder and louder with each push. Loki himself wasn’t quiet; he just tried not to make as many sounds, Tony’s voice being everything he wanted to hear for the rest of his life even. He didn’t need more.

“Ah, s-so good,” Tony moaned and tilted his head back, pushing it into the mattress, his muscles tightening around Loki. He cried out in surprise and pleasure, stopping for a moment to catch his breath before he upped the pace and strength of his thrusts. He was now going in balls deep with each time, his pants turning into full moans.

Tony wasn’t holding back his own voice, much to Loki’s pleasure. He was crying out by this point, curses and words of praise leaving his lips, Trickster’s name mixed in between them. Loki felt himself close form just that and his thrusts turned erratic, as he bruised the other’s hips to keep him in place.

His hand moved shakily to Tony’s cock, fingers wrapping around it gently. The thumb brushed over the tip smearing the precum down his length before the slow, stroking moves started. The pace sped up soon enough, though. If Tony’s reaction was anything to go by, Loki knew he was close as well.

His heart was beating like it was about to break away from his chest. His skin almost burned under the touch, and his cries were so loud, Loki could easily take them for screams. Tony’s hands flew up at some point and gripped at the god’s arms, pulling him down and claiming his lips into a sloppy yet passionate kiss.

Loki moaned into the other’s mouth, hand tightening on his hip as the other kept working on Tony’s cock. They both winced at the waves of pleasure that went through their bodied almost in the same second and they had to break away from the kiss soon enough. Stark’s arms wrapped around Loki’s middle, nails digging into his skin. He gasped at the jolt of pain, but it was nothing in comparison to his release pooling in his groin.

Loki knew it wouldn't be long until he came, and so he increased the pace of the strokes even more, trying to hit Tony’s spot with each thrust. Soon enough he smiled breathlessly as his lover’s back arched and he felt the heat covering his belly and hand, Tony’s voice so loud people had to hear him few floors down, in the offices.

The tightening muscles brought Loki to his orgasm not that long after, seed filling Stark’s insides as he rode his pleasure out in a few more shallow thrusts.

He pulled out of Tony after a few seconds and fell on the sheets right next to him, his eyes closed and smile dreamy as he tried to catch a proper breath. His hand found Tony’s and he twined their fingers lazily, still too dazed to think about anything more.

“I sometimes wish you had a vagina,” Tony muttered under his nose after a long while, whining in protest when the long fingers tightened the grip on his hand. “But then I remember moments like this and I stop,” he finished and with an effort rolled himself on his belly, half of his body leaning on Loki’s. “I love our sex. I love you.”

The god opened his eyes and looked down at him, smiling softly and moving his free hand to brush away damp strands of hair from Stark’s forehead.

“I love you,” he murmured quietly, eyes wandering around Tony’s face before they settled for the brown orbs, looking at him tenderly. “A thousand years of waiting was worth it, after all,” he whispered and leaned in to kiss his lover softly, hand sliding down from his hair to cup his cheek.

“I’m sorry I kept you waiting so long.”

* * *

They didn’t get much rest after that. Tony refused to stay in bed more than was necessary, and Loki didn’t want to be left alone again. Sometimes Tony wondered how long it would take for Loki to break and scream that he’s done with all this hiding. If he himself was banned from leaving the floor and not getting near the windows, he would eventually go crazy for sure. Even with his toys and tinkering in the workshop.

And yet Loki was stoic about the whole situation. Maybe more than Tony even. It was kind of scary, if the engineer had to be honest. Everyone else would have given up a long time ago and let themselves be found by Thanos or Odin. But Loki was still fighting, hiding to gain some time and redeem himself.

It was no lie, Tony could tell that much. He knew the look the Trickster got whenever they were talking about it. He saw it too many times in his mirror after he came back from Afghanistan. He still saw it from time to time, too, so he was more than familiar with how it looked. Maybe Loki didn’t regret everything, but he surely did regret attacking Earth, and he wanted to make up for it in a way. They both knew punishment was out of the question by this point. Thanos took care of that very well. The fact they had Thor on their side – without the Thunderer being aware of that – was something that kept Tony calmer than before.

He started to believe their chances were better than he had assumed at the beginning. Thor’s support changed a lot, no matter the fact Loki refused to admit that just now.

Tony didn’t start on the subject again, wanting for the things to cool down before he felt the need to talk about this. They would have to eventually; Thor was an ally they had without even asking for it, he was a big part of their success when they would finally get it. The blond had to have  some influence on his father’s decisions. Their hopes were raised with him, too.

“What are you thinking about?”

Tony blinked a few times and looked down at the arm piece of MARK VII lying on the desk in front of him. His hands were resting on both sides of it, the tools scattered around and waiting to be used. He sighed and rubbed at his forehead, elbow resting on the desktop as he closed his eyes again.

“Our plan,” he mumbled, sure Loki would hear him anyway.

He didn’t hear anything himself, and he frowned at that ready to say something, but when he looked up, he saw Loki sitting on the desk right next to him, worried expression twisting his pale face. Tony smiled slightly, trying to assure him that it was nothing without using words but it didn’t work out and another sigh left his lips.

“What is it, love?” Loki asked softly and leaned closer, his hand reaching to rest on Tony’s cheek. He gladly accepted it, eyes fluttering shut for a short moment as he moved his head to kiss the god’s palm.

When he opened his eyes nothing was changed, just Loki’s eyes were softer now.

“You don’t want to hear it now,” Tony shook his head and looked back at the arm piece, reaching for a proper tool to work with all the wires underneath it. “It’s nothing important, anyway.”

“If it is about Thor… tell me,” Trickster finished, his jaw a little tense at the mention of the Thunderer.

“I was just thinking – it’s nothing,” Tony still tried to wave it off, chewing on his tongue nervously, afraid to start another fight. “Don’t worry. Go back to your book, babe.”

The moment the last word left his lips, he felt two cool and strong hands on his cheeks, and he was immediately looking up, straight into the green eyes, now full of impatience and a greater worry than before.

“Tell me.”

Tony swallowed hard, his hands moving to grip at Loki’s wrist, but the god was still too strong for him. His eyes closed once again and he took a few deep breaths before he decided the best way to start. And even then, he wasn’t all that sure if it would end well.

“I— we need him, Loki,” he said quickly, lifting his eyelids to look into his lover’s eyes again. “He’s technically on our side and I was thinking how— if he could somehow convince the Allfather to… retract your punishment.”

Loki frowned in slight pain. Tony wanted to reach out and smoothe the wrinkles that appeared in between his eyebrows, the look painful to see.

“Tony, love,” Loki started and jumped off the desk to kneel on the floor in front of Tony, his hands still resting on the engineer’s cheeks. “We are able to do it ourselves—“

“No. We’re not,” this time Tony was the one to wince, the reality of the whole situation falling on him. “I’m an engineer, Loki. I tinker, I build machines; that’s all I can do. I piss Fury off every time he sees me, and Odin? After your stories he seems like an older version of Fury. I can’t—“ he cut himself off, a big lump in his throat appearing out of nowhere. “I don’t know if I can save you and I—“

His voice turned raspy, and the stinging in his eyes made him turn his head away so Loki wouldn’t see him blinking rapidly at the sensation.

It was going wrong. This conversation wasn't supposed to go like this…

But it all came to this, right? He was so full of worry and constantly thought about the ways to help Loki, not just because he wanted them to be together freely. He was desperate to find a way he himself could help, but it was like he knew from the very beginning – he wouldn’t be able to do that. He was just a mortal, who was he kidding? There was no way he could somehow convince the almighty god to change his decision about his son.

He felt so bad about that. He wanted to be the one to free Loki, to make him feel comfortable on Earth, to save him from all the danger. And he couldn’t really do that. Even with his suit and all of his toys and possible future inventions. There was no force on Earth that would convince Odin. Only Thor could do that.

He knew that, of course he did, but that didn’t stop him from this stupid hope that maybe he could come up with something.

“I can’t help you,” he muttered under his breath, voice breaking already when he stood up and started walking away from Loki to save himself the embarrassment.

He didn’t want Loki to see him like this. He never thought this would happen, anyway. They were happy together, it had been so long since he felt like this, he hoped the helplessness would never return to him. But here he was, fighting the stinging and the big lump in his throat.

He was almost by the elevator when he felt the strong arms wrapping around him from behind. He wanted to pull away, to run off as fast as he could before he breaks, but his body betrayed him. One moment he was standing motionless, the next he was turning around to lean into Loki, face buried in his black V-neck as he tried to hide the first tears that started falling from his eyes for some damned reason.

Why was this happening to them?

“I’m so sorry,  Loki, I can’t—“

“No,” the god cut him off, and his embrace tightened, almost crushing Tony’s ribs. “You can, and you are helping me. Not many people were ready to give me shelter. You are risking your freedom and life for me, you think it isn't enough for me?”

“It isn’t,” Tony bit down on his bottom lip and clutched at Loki's shirt, almost ripping it apart. “It’s not enough. I need to— I can’t let someone else do my job. I need to protect the one thing I can’t live without.”

He heard a tired sigh right next to his ear, and next thing he knew, his legs were wrapped around Loki’s waist as he carried him towards the elevator. He said nothing, the lump still sitting in his throat and refusing to go away. His eyes were closed, too, not to mention that he was still pressing his face into Trickster’s V-neck. He heard the familiar ding and the sound of doors sliding open before he felt Loki make another few steps.

“You are giving me more than I could have asked for in my entire existence, Anthony,” the god whispered right into Tony’s ear, his hands holding the engineer’s thighs securely. “I don’t need more from you. I don’t want more. I need you and you alone.”

Tony’s heart started beating faster at the words, and he was sure Loki could feel it. It still didn’t make him feel better, though. It did exactly the opposite – now he wanted to handle everything himself even more. He was about to speak up when JARVIS’s voice cut through the air, the voice sounding a little alarmed.

“Sir, Master Odinson and Miss Romanoff demand for them to be let in to your private floor immediately.”

Tony frowned at that, pulling away a little and swallowing hard, eyes turned to look at Loki. They watched each other for a long moment before Tony’s feet landed on the floor. He kept himself close to the god, though, thinking about the possible reason for the two to visit him now.

“You wanna hide?” he asked Loki slowly, taking his cool hand and squeezing it gently.

He received a head shake in response, and he breathed in heavily, the fear creeping on him form the pit of his stomach.

“Black Widow is aware I am here. Who knows if she has not said that to my br—“ His teeth clenched immediately and nostrils widened a little as he tried to keep himself at bay. “Thor,” he finished quietly.

Tony just nodded and closed his eyes, trying to come up with a strategy.

“Can you wait in our bedroom?” he pleaded softly, looking up at Loki again. “If they both know I’ll call you in, but if Thor’s still unaware it’s better if I tell him before he sees you.”

There was a long pause again, and Tony started to think Loki would say no, and that he would have to get ready for all the family drama he had wanted to avoid for a long time yet. But he saw the god nod, and he couldn’t stop a smile of relief from spreading his lips.

“I’m sorry, baby,” he muttered as he kissed his cheek before the elevator doors slid open. They both stepped inside and headed straight for the bedroom. “Let them in, JARV,” Tony called and opened the door for Loki, sending him an apologetic smile.

“Don’t worry, my love,” Loki just replied as his hands rested on Tony’s cheek, and he leaned in for a sweet kiss. It was over before Stark could enjoy it properly, and he really had to control himself so he wouldn’t pout at that fact.

Once the door to their bedroom was securely closed, he went for the living room, expecting them there. When he found it still empty, he walked towards the bar and grabbed an empty tumbler and the best scotch he could find on the shelves behind him.

He was pouring a generous but still reasonable amount of it into the glass when he heard JARVIS announcing the guests, and  seconds later, Natasha and Thor stepped into the room. It was hard to tell whose face was more frightening to Tony – Natasha’s disapproval or Thor’s betrayal and anger. That could only mean one thing.

“Man of Iron!” Thor boomed loudly, and Tony was sure the shelves behind him shook from the volume of the god’s voice. “Why have you not told me about my brother?”

The engineer smiled apologetically and left the full tumbler on the counter as he walked from behind it to gesture at his guests to sit down. “JARVIS, tell Loki he can come out now.”

“So, that’s true,” Natasha said and stopped by one of the armchairs, looking at Tony with slight disbelief. “God, Tony.”

“What do you mean?” Tony snorted and followed them, standing more than an arm’s length away from Thor; he didn’t want to test his luck just now. “You knew he was here. That’s why you came here yesterday, right?”

Natasha said nothing, because before she had a chance to her eyes wondered to the entrance of the room. Both Tony and Thor did the same, and they saw what Stark knew they would.

Loki stood in the doorway, his face free from any emotions, and eyed each person in the room before making a step forward. That was all he could do, though, because the next second the Thunderer’s arms were wrapped tightly around him, the force of the hug making him wince. His eyes closed, and he did his best to push Thor away without the use of his magic. And hurting him in the process either way.

“Brother, I was looking for you!” Thor called with a mix of happiness and sadness in his voice.

If Tony could see the fight on Loki’s face, than Natasha knew even better what was going on inside Trickster’s mind. Stark could see how hard it was for him not to spit something that would make Thor squirm in pain. It took a few seconds before he decided it was better to say nothing, and he just nodded at the other god and slowly walked towards Tony, ignoring Nat completely.

It took a moment for Thor to get back to them, and when he did, they all could still see this tiny bit of pain in his eyes. But there was happiness, too. He had to think it was a good thing when Loki didn’t act like he had since they met in New York after the Fall.

“He’s been here since you came back, right?”

Tony nodded and looked at his lover, biting on the inside of his cheek before he faced their guests. “Yep. I wasn’t looking for him for revenge,” he said slowly and sent an apologetic look in Thor’s direction.

He could imagine how it was to be betrayed by someone you considered a friend, or at least a mate, and after their last encounter, Tony was sure the Thunderer thought about him in that way. And the fact it was all about the brother he was looking for constantly didn’t make things any better.

“That much I figured myself,” Natasha replied and shook her head, sitting gracefully at the armrest of the chair behind her. She crossed her legs at her knees and eyed the couple up and down, settling for their faces at the end, her gaze making Tony think he was under a brain x-ray. “So, this month you both spent on the run, you,” he pointed at Tony, “being under his control,” at that she pointed at Loki, “didn’t look like you told us.”

“No,” Tony shook his head and unconsciously moved closer to the god behind him, reaching back to take his hand. “It looked exactly like I’ve told you. I just skipped the parts I thought wasn’t appropriate for your ears.”

He felt the cool hand in his own as soon as he finished, and he smiled just a little, squeezing it in thanks.

“Skipped parts,” Tasha repeated with a smirk, looking over at Thor who was still standing on the other end of the couch. “And you couldn’t tell Thor, either?”

“No, it’s not—“

“Thor is under the Allfather’s jurisdiction,” Loki cut in and stepped forward to stand at Tony’s side, their hands still hidden behind them. “We had no reason to trust him whatsoever.”

The engineer winced slightly, seeing Thor’s face twist in pain again. He knew Loki was right, but there were more gentle ways to explain such things. It was too late now, and he fought the urge to make everything a little better. They had more important things to discuss.

“I need—“ he started and swallowed hard, looking cautiously at Natasha and then Thor. “It’s too much to ask, but… I need your help. Both of you.”

He could feel Loki’s questioning gaze on him, but there was no time to explain now. He would hear it soon anyway if Tony’s team mates would say yes.

“You need _my_ help?” Natasha asked in disbelief and shook her head. “Why do you think I’ll be willing to help?”

“Because you warned me,” Stark replied without hesitation, and Tasha’s smirk faded. “You have your own reasons, and I need someone to keep SHIELD away from Loki and my Tower for as long as possible.”

“And that someone is me.”

“Yes. You know I wouldn’t ask you if it wasn’t important, Nat,” Tony almost pleaded, feeling as Loki pulled him close, his arms holding him as though someone was about to kidnap him.

Natasha took in a deep breath and nodded after a moment, the gesture making Tony breathe out in relief. Still, Loki’s embrace didn't loosen. It felt even more tight now, and he knew exactly why.

Thor’s gaze had been locked on them both the whole time, face tensing when he saw Loki pull Stark closer and holding him like this. The frown was deepening with every passing minute, and either Loki chose to ignore it or deal with it later, Tony couldn’t tell.

“But, I still can’t figure one thing out,” Natasha said slowly, crossing her arms on her chest. “What is your plan exactly? I know you feel… something to him, but what are you trying to do? It’s not like SHIELD will let him go once they find out. They will lock him up again.”

Tony winced and rubbed at his forehead, leaning wearily against Loki’s side. Suddenly, he felt too tired to go through a conversation like that. Shame, there was no turning back now. He looked at Tasha and swallowed hard again, glancing at Thor for a short moment. The blonde still was silent and motionless as much as Tony could tell. He was listening very closely to every word, that was obvious, but it did nothing to hide the pain in his blue eyes. It was still pretty present there, and it made Tony feel just more guilty about his and Loki’s little conspiracy.

“That’s exactly what I’m trying to do, Nat,” Tony said slowly when he looked back at the redhead, trying to find some more power in himself.

Her first reaction was shock, but in a blink of an eye her eyes showed pity and her lips spread in a mocking smirk. That was enough for Tony to know what she thought about it.

“You’re crazy, Tony,” she commented and shook her head. “The spell must’ve done something to your brain. You really _can’t_ be serious about this.”

Loki tensed at the mention of the spell. It was still a delicate subject between them, even though they have had mentioned it maybe once since Tony found him. They didn’t really have to talk about it, Stark knew what was going through Loki’s head when the god let his guard down. It didn’t happen often, but these rare times were enough to see how uncertain Loki was about the whole situation.

At first, it made Tony confused. How could Loki doubt in everything that was between them? Especially since he told him almost every day how much he loved him. Then came the memories from the time he was under the spell.

Magic wasn’t a stable force, that much he knew himself even without Trickster telling him that. Breaking the spell in a way Loki did it when he saved Tony from the Chituari – well, it had to be dangerous. Hell, Tony thought about it himself. That his love was just the remains of a working spell, nothing more, and that it would fade with time. But after a few weeks, nothing happened. He still dreamt about the god, wanted to feel him close when he laid in bed alone.

Tony was sure the spell was gone completely, and that the love he felt was completely his and no one or nothing else’s. He was the one who wanted Loki.

So he looked at the god before he as much as thought about the answer, and he gave him a loving smile, squeezing his hand to emphasize. He wanted to do something more, but he knew he was already pushing his luck with just these simple gestures.

He turned back to Natasha and his smile faded, seeing her skepticism was bordering on the edge of her calling SHIELD and a psychiatrist.

“I’m serious, Natasha. You know as well as I that the Chitauri didn’t hold Loki for two weeks just to chat about their failure.” Loki tensed even more, and Tony had to really fight the urge to hold him protectively against himself. Instead, he settled for another hand squeeze and he continued. “I saw enough before he sent me back. He paid for the Battle. He had his punishment, and he doesn’t deserve another one.”

“You know they won’t believe you. Even if I do, that won’t mean anything for them,” she said slowly, standing up and moving from the armchair to couch and back. “Fury wants Loki dead or alive. They’ll just say we’re compromised, and they won’t listen to us. That’s easier for them.”

“You think I don’t know that?” Tony winced, just the thought of Loki held captive again and him being unable to do a thing making his heart ache a little. “I thought through almost every possibility, Natasha. But I still need time.”

Tasha stopped halfway to the couch and looked at Tony, frowning in confusion. “For what?”

“For— I just do, okay?” he said loudly, the feeling of helplessness from before coming back. He wanted to run away from here and hide into his workshop so he could work for days and finally find a solution for Loki to stay safe and with him.

“Anthony,” he heard a soft voice in his ear, and that was when he realized he was hiding himself in Loki as much as he could. The shake of his head was a first reaction, but a moment later, when everything came back to him, he pulled away, taking in a deep breath.

“I’m fine,” he said slowly, and without another word, he made his way towards the bar, ignoring the feeling of three pairs of eyes staring at him. He grabbed the tumbler he had filled before and downed it quickly, pouring himself another as soon as the glass hit the counter.

He could hear someone approaching, but he still didn’t raise his head. Even when a gentle hand took the glass away from him and set it as far from him as possible.

“Love, calm down,” Loki whispered into his ear again and hugged him from behind, oblivious to the fact Natasha and Thor were watching. “We will be fine.”

“You don’t know that,” Tony muttered in response, closing his eyes as he tried to hide his face somehow. He settled for the side of his face pressed against Loki’s shoulder. “Don’t say that when you don’t know.”

Loki just pulled him closer in response, kissing the side of his neck softly only to bury his face there a moment later. The silence in the room wasn’t the awkward kind, and after a while, Tony started to wonder if they were left alone. Thor’s booming voice made the thought go away, though.

“Man of Iron,” his voice was loud but soft, no sign of pain in it anymore. Stark looked at him with hesitation and blinked when he saw worry in the blonde’s features. “I promise you and my brother, I will protect you. Loki suffered for his deeds more than we would make him to,” he said and took in a deep breath. “I will speak with our father and convince him to leave Loki alone.”

Tony could tell Loki wasn’t about to comment on that, his face still buried in the engineer’s neck. His breathing was steady, too, but there was something about that told Tony he wasn’t okay with the fact Thor was taking care of it. He knew it was for completely different reasons than he had, but nevertheless, they both didn’t really like it.

Yet they knew it was the only way.

“Thank you,” Tony said quietly and nodded, trying to smile kindly at his team mate.

The situation still wasn’t one he would want to repeat – or remember – ever again. There was something about seeing Natasha look at him with pity and disbelief. Or maybe it was disdain in her eyes. She was known for hiding her feelings, after all. He couldn’t even be sure that she wasn’t working for Fury still. For all he knew, she might be a double agent, she surely had done that in the past. But  they had no other choice, she was their only way to keep SHIELD away from them; they had to trust her.

“Well, I certainly got more info than I wanted to,” Natasha commented and sent Tony a wry smile, her hands pushed into her jeans pockets. She didn’t look like Natasha in that pose; whether it was because she wasn’t comfortable with the situation or wanted to leave quickly to tell Fury anything, Tony couldn’t tell. “Take care of him,” she added after a moment, her eyes locked on Loki. The god must’ve sensed that because he raised his head and looked at her in slight confusion. “I’ve never seen him like this. And I worked for him for some time, when he had palladium poisoning.”

Tony winced at the mention of that, still regretting the things he did back then. He shook his head and shot Nat a deadly glare, hoping it affected her more than she would let show. “You didn’t work for _me_. You worked for Fury. As you always do,” he commented and took in a deeper breath, when Loki’s arms tightened slightly around him.

“Yeah, well,” she tilted her head to the right and then to the left, pressing her lips together for a moment. “I still got to spend time with you. You didn’t act like you did today back then,” she said slowly, and Tony wasn’t completely sure, but it must’ve been concern in her voice.

With that, she gave them a small nod and left the room. There was no sound of the elevator, though. She had to wait for Thor to follow her, but the Thunderer remained in his spot, watching Tony and Loki with an unreadable expression in his face.

“You can speak your thoughts,” Loki said with a hint of frustration in his voice. “I know you want to.”

Tony rested one of his hands over the god’s that were resting on his abdomen, and he twined their fingers together. He felt how tense Loki was under Thor’s look, but he couldn’t tell exactly why. When he looked into the blue eyes of the other god, he could see confusion, pain, willingness to help and something more he couldn’t really place.

“Are you happy, brother?” Thor asked and took a step forward, his gaze showing how much he wanted to hear the answer.

“I am not your brother,” left Trickster’s mouth almost automatically, and Tony started to wonder how many times he had said this already.

“Are you happy?” Thunderer repeated, his voice stronger than before.

“Yes, I am happy. More than I ever was during all these years on Asgard,” Loki snapped, and Tony squeezed his hand hard, letting him know it was enough. Before the last words fell from his lover’s lips, he could see how much it would hurt Thor.

There was a flash of pain on the bearded face, but in a blink of an eyes it was replaced by a genuine smile. “That’s all I needed to know,” he said quietly, and his gaze turned to Tony. “Thank you. I don’t know how will I repay you for taking care of my brother.”

He could feel Loki tensing again, and he stepped on his foot hard to stop him from saying anything. The message must’ve reached, because there was nothing, and Tony smiled in relief before his eyes met Thor’s.

“You know what to do, Mean Swing,” he replied, and both of them laughed, shortly and quietly, and Thor left with a nod to both of them.

Seconds later, there was a sound of elevator door closing, and Tony wiggled out of Loki’s grip, turning to have a good look at him. His face was blank, just like the Thunderer’s minutes later, and he couldn’t stop a frown from twisting his face.

“He’s helping us, Loki. Can’t you see how much he wants you to be okay?”

Loki’s teeth clenched, hands fisting so hard his knuckles turned white, but he said nothing, choosing to take a few steps away from Tony instead. He stopped on the other side of the counter, half way to the couch when he turned around and faced him again.

“I can see,” he said slowly, swallowing hard after. “But I cannot just switch my feelings towards him. I am not a machine, Anthony.”

“I know you’re not. But you need his help. Is that how you treat your allies?”

“I did worse.”

Tony rolled his eyes at that, unable to stop a short chuckle that left his lips. Whenever he stopped believing the Mythology was right to call Loki a trickster, he did something that made the doubts disappear. And that’s exactly what he did now, his expression more than mischievous.

“Of course, you did. Can I hear about some?” Tony asked and walked towards him, kissing his cheek.

He planned to pull away after that and sit on the couch, but the strong hands stopped him and he was pushed flush against Loki’s body, feeling the soft lips on his neck seconds after.

“Of course, you can. But it still depends on what you would like to hear exactly. Just pranks or maybe something more?”

“Do I really need to answer that?” Tony grinned widely and pushed Loki towards the couch.

* * *

They received all the time they thought they needed..

Soon after the conversation with Natasha and Thor, the latter came to visit them again. Loki refused to stay in the same room, still not comfortable with Thor’s presence, but Tony made sure he was there. And by “made sure”, he meant promising a hell of night later in their bedroom. It still took some time to convince him to be there, the Thunderer waiting for them in the lounge for a good half an hour before they finally reemerged from one of the guest rooms, where they were having the talk.

The visit was nothing they didn’t expect, but it still left them uneasy. Odin wanted to see Loki. For whatever Thor had no idea, but he was all too eager to assure them it wasn’t to imprison the Trickster. Even Tony could tell just from the way Tor was speaking with them, he wasn’t sure what were his father’s intentions. Yet, he still had the fool’s hope – as Loki had called it – that Odin was just trying to get his second son back.

Of course, they both were skeptical about the proposition. Tony wouldn’t let Loki go alone there, even if the god wanted to. He still had to complete the project of the suit he had decided to build after he went through the records of the events in New Mexico over a year ago. There was no force on Earth that would make him agree for Loki to go to Asgard alone. Even with Thor on their side.

They talked with Thor a while longer, Loki more of a listener as he threw daggers at his stepbrother with his eyes. They went through every possible solution to the situation, a compromise even. At the end, when Thor left, disappearing in dark clouds and lightings surrounding the Tower, they were still unsure if they were taking the right choice. Further negotiations with Odin might be as pointless as convincing Hawkeye to stay on the ground during his missions.

But what other choice did they have?

Tony needed time to finish and perfect his new suits. Loki just sat and read books for most of the time when Stark was working in the lab, and it was a routine he started to grow fond of. Having Loki close and still getting lost in what he did best? Hell to the yes, he wasn’t going to change that.

Loki seemed to enjoy that as well. Mostly because he was getting to know more and more about Earth from all the books. There was a new bunch of books coming to the Tower once a week, most of them fantasy books, but there were lots of mythology or science books. It got to the point where Tony had to turn one of the guest rooms on his private floor into Loki’s private library, the amount of books was increasing that much.

Not that he mind that. He loved watching Loki read. He did that whenever he was too frustrated to continue his work or was just simply taking breaks to have a cup of coffee or a waffle. Surprisingly, he had started taking better care of himself now that Loki lived with him. Maybe it was because for the first couple of weeks, the god was reminding him about it. Sometimes even pushing him into the toilet or bathroom when Tony refused to walk away from his work. After that time, it all just blended into his working scheme.

They were great together. Even when they fought almost every night over stupid things, Tony considered it a better thing than spending their time watching pointless romantic comedies. Not that either of them liked those kind of movies. As far as Tony was concerned, he didn’t need television at all, but Loki loved watching the documents about the universe, what humans had discovered so far, and what they thought was yet to come. He liked pointing out the little mistakes, because surprisingly human scientists and astronauts did a pretty good job at exploring the cosmos.

He also loved watching the documentaries about Earth. Random places, animals, diseases, it was somewhat new to him, and it turned out Loki was as hungry for new things to learn about as Tony did. He was way faster, though.

Apart from Thor, there was nothing that could bother them. There had been no word from Natasha since the last time she visited them, but in that case, it was a good thing. That meant SHIELD had gotten nothing new about Loki, and they were safe for now. Everything was going so well, Tony started believing again that they were going to make it. That they would succeed, and Loki would be set free, maybe doing some public work, help with the rebuilding of destroyed buildings perhaps. He could handle that. He had his magic, and it surely didn’t take much of his power to move a brick.

Once Tony asked him about the magic. How does it work, if it’s endless and what’s the source of it.

Loki wasn’t eager to talk about it, not comfortable to share details even with Tony. Still, he answered some of the questions. He explained as much as he could that the magic was in him from the very beginning, and he just had to practice. Thanks to all the spell books Frigga gave him to read, and all the practice he had gotten, he was one of the greatest on Asgard, if not in the Nine Realms. At least, that’s what he said. He also said he had fought with many, and everyone lost against him. That impressed Tony so much he pulled him into their bedroom with a grin on his face.

They were working out better than Tony could have ever expected them to. He was more than sure after all this time that he had finally found the one he wanted to spend the rest of his life with.

He didn’t know how much of their sweet routine they had left until it was too late.

* * *

When Loki woke up, there was no one in bed with him. This was surprising, considering the fact he was always the one waking up earlier. Tony always stayed in his lab until his eyes were closing of their own accord, and it was usually Loki who dragged him up to their floor and into the bed.

The more time passed, the harder Tony was working. In the month and a week since Loki had lived with him, he had built five suits, including the one which resembled the Destroyer. It was amazing how much a mortal could do in such a short period of time without the use of magic. Of course, Tony was using his bots and JARVIS to do the big part of the job, but he was always checking the progress in case there was something wrong. And if there was a mistake somewhere in the making, he continued the work on his own. Without his machines, using just his hands. He refused every time Loki offered his help, saying that he had everything and there was no need for an additional pair of hands.

The point was, Loki was starting to worry Tony was running away to his job to avoid his nightmares and talking about them. In the last couple of weeks, there wasn’t a night where Loki couldn’t feel the warm body next to him tremble and whine quietly in his sleep. It’s like the fact the Trickster was there stopped working against the nightmares Tony had before they met.

Tony’s smile faded after the first nightmare. It faded more and more every day  until at some point, it disappeared completely. When he smiled, it was always a fake quirk of his lips, his eyes remaining hopeless and scared. He tried to hide it, but Loki wasn’t a simple mortal; he couldn’t be fooled.

So today, when he couldn’t see Tony in the bed next to him, he decided the time had come. He wouldn't wait for Tony to come and talk because that would probably never happen. If he wanted the love of his life to come back to him, he needed to make the engineer talk.

Loki slowly stood up and got dressed before he went to the kitchen to make himself a cup of tea. He was so focused on Tony that he startled himself when he realized he was sitting on the couch and holding a cold drink. He sighed and rubbed at his forehead, setting the glass on the coffee table.

He needed to do something with Tony. Loki knew he was desperate to help, but he thought that after the talk they had with Thor and Agent Romanoff a few weeks back everything would be okay.

Yet, it wasn't. It seemed to set Tony off even more.

An hour later, the god was walking out of the elevator. His fingers punched in the right code on the glass, and it wasn’t a second before the door opened, letting him inside. He was about a foot away from Tony, his bare feet barely making any sound on the cold floor, when JARVIS spoke up making both of them jump in surprise.

“Sir, Director Fury calls. Says it’s a matter of life and death.”

“Of course, it is,” Tony sighed and leaned back into his chair, still very unaware Loki was not so far behind him. “Give him to me, I wanna know what kind of “life and death matter” is it.”

“Yes, sir.”

A second passed, and Loki still stood motionlessly in his spot, his green eyes locked on the back of the engineer’s head. The familiar voice of a man with an eye patch made him swallow hard, the memories of their last encounter not as pleasant as anyone could think.

“Stark, we have a problem. You and your Iron Man need to show up at the EmpireStateBuilding asap.”

“EmpireState?” Tony repeated, a little startled, the tone of Fury’s voice making him straighten up in his seat. “Why there? What is it?”

“Turn the tv on a random news channel,” was all Fury said before he ended the call.

Still, before the sound cut off, Loki could hear someone in distance at Fury’s place shouting out orders. This couldn’t be something petty, that he was sure of.

“JARV, the screen. CNN,” Tony ordered and the screen slid down from the ceiling, the requested channel already playing.

There was chaos on the streets, it wasn’t hard to figure this out. People were running to hide, leaving their cars, taking their kids in their arms and just running as far as they could from the danger. Many of them were falling onto the ground, the SHIELD agents and policemen helping them immediately and pulling in the direction they knew was safe. Still, Loki had no idea what the source of this chaos was, but if SHIELD was already there, he should be worried.

The sign at the bottom of the screen said “ANOTHER ALIEN ATTACK”. The god frowned at that, narrowing his eyes as he read that the footage was going live.

“Jesus fuck,” he heard Tony’s quiet voice and a minute later he was on his legs, running to his long repaired Mark VII.

He still hadn't acknowledged Loki was there, but the god couldn’t blame him. He watched as mortals kept running, falling and getting up, screaming when they couldn’t find their kids. He was sure that if he went there, his ears would blow up from the amount of sounds and screams. Most of it now surely was muffled out by the camera’s microphone and the long distance from which they were recording.

They still didn’t show who was behind this. The god moved closer to the screen, hands resting on the backrest of Tony’s chair as he kept watching, his eyes full of fear.

Tony was going there. He was going to help these people, fight something he didn’t have any idea about. What if it was The Other? Or Thanos? What if it was someone even Loki couldn’t beat?

“Anthony,” he called quietly, his voice hoarse, and he started towards the place Tony’s machines were assembling the suit onto his body. “Anthony, no.”

The engineer looked at him, startled, only now seeing Loki was in the lab. “Loki, what— I can’t talk now, I need to go—“

“No, don’t go,” Loki pleaded, not caring about the look he received in return. “You have no knowledge of this thing. You could lose your life there.”

“I’ll be okay, baby, I promise,” he replied and gasped a moment later, when a chest plate was pressed against his torso. “There rest of the team are probably on their way. Besides, we beat you. What can be worse?” he winked and then winced when the machines assembled the back plate to his body.

“Do I need to answer that question? Anthony, I beg you,” Loki said slowly, almost falling down onto his knees. “You don’t know what is this thing. At least wait until you know!”

“I can’t. You know, I can’t. I’m sorry,” Tony shook his head and stayed motionless, letting the last part be added to his suit. A minute later and he was standing on his own, his iron-covered arms reaching to wrap around Loki. It was cold, but he knew Tony was just an inch away, so he leaned into the embrace, his forehead resting on the metallic shoulder. “I’ll be back. I promise,” came the muffled,  slightly robotic voice, and a second later Tony was pulling away.

Loki reached for him in desperation, the feeling that it was all going to end poorly making his stomach ache. Before he could grab the engineer, he was already moving to the window, which uncovered itself once the thick wall slid away. He watched Iron Man stand in front of it, the repulsors in his boots raising him a few inches above the floor a before he flew off, glass scattering all over the lab at the impact.

He wanted to run to the window, use his magic to fly after him, do _something_ so he wouldn’t be alone there. Yet, he knew that he would be braking their two main rules to keep him safe. That was the moment he felt the frustration growing on him. There weren’t many times in his long life when he felt tied up, helpless. It seemed to be happening more often lately, though, and he absolutely despised that.

Loki watched as the wall slid into its place, covering the lack of one window, before he took in a deep breath and went back to the screen, on which the live feed from the event was still playing.

There were changes on the streets, and he was only gone maybe a couple of  minutes. The pavement and cars that were left on the street were covered in the rubble from the nearest buildings. The damage seemed to grow more and more with every minute, not to mention people who were too slow to escape. Loki could see some of them lying unconscious under the big pieces of walls.

They still didn’t show what or who was behind all this, and Loki was growing more and more sure he’d need to break the rules soon, if they didn't.

Suddenly, there was a flash of red and gold in front of the camera, soon followed by a shake when the operator pulled back in shock and surprise. Tony even now couldn’t stop himself from a big entrance. He flew past the helicopter and then down onto the street. He started helping the medics pull the people from under the rubble. There was nothing going on apart from that; Loki could see Tony looking around every time he was walking to help another person.

There seemed to be no one who was hurting people and causing all the damage. At least, no one who was visible.

Loki’s heart started beating faster at just the thought that there was magic involved in it. Immediately, the spells that could cause all of this ran through his mind, and he was wondering who of all the witches and wizards could come to Earth. He was sure his attack on New York wasn’t known widely in the Nine Realms.

He closed his eyes for a moment, wincing as his mind kept racing, but he still was going through every possibility. When he opened his eyes again and looked at the screen, he saw Captain America, Black Widow and Hawkeye helping Tony in moving the rubble off of people. All seemed finally okay, there were no new pieces falling from the buildings, everything was quiet and somehow calm. Paramedics were hurrying to every human they could see, taking him into to the ambulances, as the Avengers were uncovering more and more victims.

The reporter, who had to be close to the camera operator, started talking about how everything had calmed down and that there was no need to be worried about more attacks. Loki stopped listening to him after that. He sat down in Tony’s chair and let out a long heavy sigh, his head resting on his hands as he leaned forward, breathing like he just run down to the Bifrost and back.

He was really starting to believe it was all over already and there was no need to be worried about Tony. But right at that moment, there was a shout and Loki looked up at the screen in time to see the flash of bright green energy being shot at the helicopter the reporters were in. Everything started shaking, the buildings and everything the camera was able to catch was blurred. There was one more flash before the screen turned black, and the Trickster could catch a glance of a familiar female face.

Amora.

This was all he needed. There were no rules anymore. Nothing. If Amora was there, the Avengers would need all the help they could get. Magic especially, and Thor was nowhere to be seen so far. Not to mention he didn’t know a thing about magic.

They needed Loki.

“JARVIS, open the window,” he started as he stood up from the chair and walked towards the wall that not such a long time ago slid back for his lover.

“Sir, I am afraid I’m not allowed to—“

“Do it or I destroy the lab,” Loki said calmly, but inside he was already boiling with rage.

How did she come to be here? She wasn’t powerful enough to move in between realms. No one was. The only way was the Bifrost, which was probably still very much destroyed, or some artifact, like the Tesseract. With an artifact like that, one could do anything, strengthening themselves and gaining fear and respect from the rest of the Nine Realms.

The thing was, Amora couldn’t get any of that. All of the most powerful artifacts were resting securely in Asgard’s vault. Thor didn’t mention last time that something was stolen, and he surely would come back to Midgard if that was the case; he was protecting this planet now, wasn’t he? He would need to make sure everything was okay here.

“Yes, sir,” came the reply, shaking him out of his thoughts, and just when the wall started to slide back again, there was a noise upstairs.

The Trickster’s head snapped up almost immediately and he turned around, walking back to the screen. “Give the live feed of our private floor, please,” he asked nicely this time, afraid of what he might see.

Without another word, JARVIS turned off CNN and put on the view of their living room. There was glass everywhere, none of the windows surviving the impact, not to mention the coffee table. Everything was covered with it, and right in the middle of all the mess lied…

“No,” Loki whispered brokenly, and a second later he was at the elevator, pushing the button until it came to him. He stepped inside and repeated the action with the button to their private floor, his whole body shaking from absolute fear.

He couldn’t believe she would go right after Tony. Why him? She could’ve picked anyone else, the Captain even. But for some unknown reason, she picked the one mortal most precious to him. This was like a slap in the face from the the Norns.

He ran out of the elevator as soon as the doors slid open, and a second later he stopped, the big and angry eyes on him. Loki looked back at Amora, teeth clenched and eyes narrowed threateningly. She just smirked venomously in return, and looked back at Tony, who didn’t seem to notice any of it.

“I like it rough, but you’re overdoing it, Missy,” came the robotic voice, and Loki could tell Tony was having trouble with breathing.

The anger rose in him even more, and he felt his face turning a bride shade of red as the magic showed itself and crept from his fingertips and up his arms. His breathing turned heavy, the sight of Tony struggling to get up, his armor dented and scratched so much there was barely any paint left on it. It was all too much for Loki already.

It was a matter of seconds before his armor materialized itself around him, the god standing in front of Tony and Amora in his full gear. He even had his helmet on. What was missing was the scepter, but it was never his in the first place, he’d have to make it all work without it.

“Leave him,” he spoke and took a step towards The Enchantress, ignoring the quick turn of Iron Man’s head as he stood in front of him, covering him from Amora’s sight.

“A pet of yours?” she asked mockingly, her voice even more high-pitched than Loki remembered it. “It has been a long time since we last saw each other, God of Mischief,” she smirked again and walked a few steps to the side, never dropping her eyes off of Loki.

“Indeed, Enchantress,” he replied blankly, following her every move. “I was beginning to think we would never meet again.”

She laughed shortly, the sound so high it almost made Loki squirm. He remained motionless, but he could hear Tony whine quietly behind him, the clang of metal against metal following a second after. Like he tried to cover his ears. Loki wasn’t really surprised; Amora’s voice wasn’t one of the most pleasant ones to listen to. Not that anyone would want to hear what she had to say.

“Faith can be surprising,” she almost sing-songed, and that venomous smirk was back on her long and pale face. “I was bored after our last encounter. No purpose nor mission to keep me occupied. But that is not the case anymore,” she tilted her head slightly to the side and stopped, facing Loki completely. “I was promised to receive whatever I wanted if I fulfilled my task.”

“A task?” Loki’s eyes narrowed. “I thought the Great Enchantress was not meant to serve anyone,” he mocked, and the second he finished the sentence, he realized it was a mistake.

She started towards him, her hands glowing with the same bright force he saw on the news channel, but now he could see there was something more in this light. It was a little darker than normal shade of Amora’s force, and he could swear he saw a glimpse of dark blue in it.

His body reacted in the same way, his deep green surrounding his hands as he already casted the spells in his mind, creating a protective barrier in front of himself. Once Amora hit it with her spell, his whole body shuddered, the force of the impact was so strong. There was really something different about her. She was determined to fulfill the task, just like she said. It was not like her, and yet Loki seemed to see something familiar in her face.

There was another hit, and he almost collapsed onto his knees, Tony catching him in his metal arms before he did.

“Are you okay, Reindeer Games?” he asked, and Loki just nodded in return, eyes locked on The Enchantress.

“I won’t hold her any longer,” he muttered, turning his face an inch or so, so Tony could hear him. “She’s stronger. Call your team and— ah!” he winced at another even stronger hit at his shield and he took a step back, colliding with Tony’s metal chest. “Call the Director. I need Thor.”

Amora seemed to slow down at the mention of the Thunderer, her eyes turning wide as she looked around. That gave Loki what needed. She was distracted and that was exactly the right moment to make his move now.

The shield was gone in a blink of an eye, and he mouthed the right formula before his hands lifted. and he threw a ball of deep green light at her. She let out a short scream, her body flying up in the air and hitting the wall a few feet behind her. Her eyes were closed, once she slid down onto the floor, obviously unconscious and only then did Loki let himself to take a few deep breaths.

After such a long time without using magic. he should be at the peak of his powers. He should be able to take Amora down without a problem. And here he was, struggling for breath after two spells. This really wasn’t his day, was it?

“Loki,” he heard Tony’s robotic voice, and he slowly turned around, doing his best to smile even a little.

“I’m fine,” he said quickly without waiting for another word. “I’ll be okay. We need to leave now. I don’t know how long she’ll be unconscious. Did you call everyone?”

Iron Man gave him a small nod, and a cold arm wrapped around his waist. He leaned into the embrace, grateful there was no one else to see him like this. He was so confused about everything, not to mention the confusion he felt when he saw another color in Amora’s force. He had to find out what was going on before he fought her again.

“There’s something wrong,” he started as they went out onto the balcony, the cool breeze hitting his face. It made him feel better, and he stepped away from Tony, looking up at him as he tried to come up with explanation to all of this. “She was never this strong. She has to have something that adds to her magic, something like Tesseract.”

“But isn’t the Cube on Asgard?”

“It is, if it was gone we would somehow know, Thor would find a way to inform you and SHIELD. All of the other artifacts are there as well, I don’t understand…”

He looked at Tony helplessly, and that’s when they heard a noise somewhere above them. They turned, standing by each other’s side and didn’t really have to look up to see the source of the sound. Somehow, Amora materialized right in front of the balcony, a big circle of the green-blue light surrounding her. Her blond hair where all around her head, waving on the wind and looking like a halo. Even her tight green leather suit seemed to move.

It was all very impressive, but Loki knew she always liked to impress her opponents, sometimes using a big part of her magic to do so. He had to hope that was the case this time, too.

“You will understand soon enough, my Prince,” she called, last two words leaving her lips in a mocking tone of voice.

Loki could feel that Tony was now a few inches above the floor. He could see from the corner of his eyes as the hands with the repulsors were aimed at the Enchantress. It didn’t seem to impress her, though, and she was still smirking, her crazy eyes locked on Loki. He felt the shiver running down his spine at the look in her eyes, and he positioned himself similar to Tony – his hands raised, palms up, his green force covering them up to his wrists.

He had the feeling Amora was here because of him. He couldn’t convey the reason, but he knew after the look in her eyes she was here for him. All of this happened because of him. He was destroying New York without even leaving the Tower.

Loki swallowed hard and took a small step forward, big balls of his energy forming around his hands. He never broke the eye contact, using all of his free will to look at Tony. She already knew there was something between them, he didn’t want him to get hurt more than he already was.

He took another step forward, hearing the movement behind himself, and he was ready to turn around and cast a spell on Tony so he would stay in place when he saw a stream of Amora’s energy flying towards him. His reaction was too slow, he didn’t manage to create his shield again, and the force hit him right in the middle of his chest.

He stumbled backwards with a gasp, but apart from that, he felt nothing more. He didn’t feel the magic penetrate him, he didn’t feel any other jolts of pain but the one from the hit. He frowned in confusion and raised his gaze. Everything looked like he was looking through the green-blue filter. And that was exactly what he was doing.

Amora didn’t send the stream to hurt him, she did it to imprison him.

The Trickster heard a distant scream, every sound outside of the bubble he was in muffled. He looked at the Enchantress, her evil smirk sending a shiver down his spine. He didn’t try to get away; he knew by now that it would be pointless. Not when he was so focused on the imprisoning spell. He had nothing else to do but wait.

“Finally in a cage; just like everyone wants you to be,” she commented, her voice filling the bubble like the walls were one big speaker. “I have heard it’s not your first time. Does it feel like home, my prince?”

Her high-pitched laugh filled the air around Loki, and he had to cover his ear with his palms, unable to stop himself. It seemed she had strengthened her voice, probably just to make him angry.

“What do you want?” Loki asked as soon as the laugh quieted down, his eyes locked on Amora.

“You have failed the wrong people, you petty god,” she snorted and raised her chin proudly. “I have not only found a way to get my revenge for our last meeting, I will also receive a very pleasant reward for bringing you to Him.”

Loki froze almost immediately, completely terrified of the meaning of Amora’s words. It couldn’t an accident; if what she spoke was true, and she did have a task… He now recognized what was it about her face that seemed familiar to him.

She was terrified, as well. Terrified of what The Other and Thanos can do her if she failed, just like Loki did. There was no other explanation now.

“You foolish woman,” he muttered and turned around in the bubble.

His eyes looked straight at Tony, who was now joined by the rest of Avengers, but there was still no sign of Thor. Loki blinked as one of the repulsor blasts hit the sheath on the level of his face, his face twisting in pain when he realized how Tony must’ve felt right now. He wanted to reach for him or do something, but that would do no good, Tony would go insane either way. And Loki and Amora seemed to be at least a world away while surrounded by the energy.

“I am no fool!” Loki heard her voice, but didn’t turn away, realizing the air around him started to smell differently. It wasn’t supposed have a scent at all, but now he could smell something he couldn’t recognize. “You are a fool! For taking a mission you were not able to accomplish! You lost! Now I will do what you were meant to!”

“No!” Loki turned in a blink of an eye and looked at her with rage. “You will not have this planet, Amora! Not now, never!”

Her laugh filled the space around him again, and he squirmed, covering his ears again as he tried to stop the high-pitched sound.

“I never said I want it now,” she snorted, and Loki could feel the smell growing stronger until the point he started to choke.

He fell on his knees and heard the scream, the familiar voice calling him. He wanted to call back, but all he could manage was to choke out Tony’s name, his hands curling into fists on the ground. He couldn’t recognize the spell, he never heard about any spell like this, and he was aware that without that knowledge he was doomed. Nothing and no one would be able to help him.

He was starting to feel the metallic taste on his tongue as he kept chocking and coughing. He wasn’t sure if the spell was deadly, but he surely felt like he was dying. His throat hurt so much, and he felt like he was about to spit his own lungs onto the ground. He couldn’t even make himself react to the loud booming noise above them. Even when something hit his bubble, and he was suddenly surrounded by the jolts of blue and yellow light.

In a matter of seconds Amora’s energy disappeared from around him, and everything that was muffled by it hit Loki with doubled strength. The noises hurt his ears and colors, his eyes. The only thing good about it was the fact he was finally able to breathe in clean air, his coughing turning weaker with every new breath.

“Loki,” he heard Tony’s voice by his ear, and he felt as the cold, metallic arms lifted him up. “Loki, baby, say something. Are you okay?”

Tony was obviously terrified, and it had nothing to do with the fact that Amora was gone. The Trickster looked over Iron Man’s shoulder to see she was no longer levitating in front of the balcony. Instead of her, Thor was now standing on the edge, his back to them.

“Tony,” he said in a hoarse voice and finally looked at him, to see his face plate was up. “I—“ he coughed weakly and winced, when the taste of blood was back in his mouth. “I’m fine.”

“Don’t bullshit me. You’re almost transparent— Back off, Steve.”

Loki tried to smile, but his muscles failed him. It was like the coughing took away all of his strength, and if it wasn’t for the fact that he didn’t have anything to hold on to anyway, he would be probably have been unable to even wrap his hands around Tony’s neck. The spell was powerful enough to do that to him, and he started to wonder, what else Amora was able to do.

“Find out…” he muttered, wincing at the pain in his throat. “If there’s… something… missing—“

“Loki,” Tony cut him off and laid him down on their bed. He hovered over him then, a wrinkle forming in between his brows as he looked down at the god with fear and worry. “Don’t talk. I remember what you said earlier, but this can wait.”

“N-no,” Loki managed to get out and made an attempt to sit up, but his muscles failed him again. All he could do was breathe, and a small wave of frustration washed over him. They needed to know what kind of artifact Amora was using to strengthen her magic. She was dangerous. And he had to tell them who sent her. “She—“

“Loki, please,” Tony repeated with a hint of reprimand in his voice, and he kneeled down beside him, taking Loki’s hand in between two of his still armored ones. “What you need is rest, and I will give you that. We’ll talk once you’re okay.”

The god wanted to protest, but he felt that he was falling asleep against his will, body betraying him in the worst of moments. He kept his eyes on Tony as long as he could, his eyelids slowly covering his eyes as he was swallowed by the darkness more and more with every breath. A quiet “I love you” slipped past his lips, and the next second he was sleeping, nightmares from his encounter with Thanos coming back again and again.

* * *

Loki slept two whole days after the fight. It kept Tony’s mind successfully away from the thoughts about the events with The Enchantress. He knew Loki would be mad at him for sitting by his bed instead of taking care of everything he asked him to do, but… It wasn’t his fault he couldn’t focus. Technically, it was Loki’s fault, if he looked at the situation from a certain point view.

And it wasn’t like he had the peace he wanted as he was sitting by the Trickster’s side. For the first twelve hours, JARVIS was talking so often Tony was  considering turning him off. Not because he grew tired of his AI’s voice. All the people that tried to contact him did that. SHIELD was trying every ten minutes; at least that’s how it felt. Every time Fury threatened him with something different, but he finally gave up seeing there was no results.

Pepper called once or twice. That was the best thing about all the calls JARVIS was taking. She knew Tony all too well, and she wasn’t trying too much. He didn’t pick up her calls, anyway, but JARVIS was more than kind enough to pass the messages to him. Each time, she expressed her hope that everything was okay with Loki and that Tony himself was okay. There was no request to call her back.

Those two days were some of the worst in his life, he was pretty sure of that. U and Dum-E were bringing him food and drinks, but apart from that they couldn’t do more, even if they looked like they wanted to. Tony held Loki’s hand constantly, sometimes talked to him, complaining about all the calls and how much shit they both would be in once the god wakes up.

Loki was stirring in his sleep almost constantly, the slight wince twisting his face from time to time. Tony knew it had to be caused by nightmares, and each time he saw the god’s expression, he wanted to wake him up, but he still kept in mind something Thor told him back on Jotunheim, when they were looking for Loki – _Asgardians heal faster while asleep_. He didn’t want Loki to go through the nightmares and at the same time he wanted him to be healthy as soon as possible. So each time the Trickster started to shudder on the bed, he was lying down next to him and pulling into a tight embrace, his lip by his ear as he whispered soothing words to calm him down.

It was surprising how fast Loki was calming down after that. It also made Tony feel a little better, because for once he was somehow helping Loki. It still wasn’t enough to make him stop feeling guilty, though.

Every time he was closing his eyes, he saw Loki in that bubble, on his knees, unable to do much more than choke on the air. He still felt the fear and desperation when his repulsor blasts were unable to break the energy. He couldn’t forget it and was sure he never would. He couldn’t save the one person he was ready to give his life for. He was failing Loki again and again.

Tony was holding the god close again when he heard a small whine and the green eyes fluttered open. He pulled away enough to watch him closely, and Loki blinked rapidly, rubbing at his face before he said anything.

“Anthony?” he muttered once he looked at Tony and he nodded, smiling widely when he heard his voice didn’t sound like he spat out his own lungs.

“Oh, thank God, you’re awake,” Tony muttered back and placed a soft kiss on his forehead. “I was wondering how long it would take you to heal,” he said quietly against his soft skin.

Loki’s eyes closed again, and he leaned into the embrace, his arms wrapping around Tony for the first time since the attack. He snuggled close, his armor vanishing in a blink of an eye. Tony had tried to take it off as soon as the Trickster fell asleep, but he couldn’t find the straps that kept it in place and after nearly an hour, he just gave up.

“How long?” Loki asked quietly, kissing the underside of the engineer’s jaw a moment later, his hands ghosting over the hem of his shirt.

“Two days.”

Everything stopped the moment Tony spoke the words, and the god slowly pulled away from the embrace, his green eyes wide open in shock. Tony frowned at that and was about to ask what was it all about, when Loki spoke up first.

“How come I’m still here? They saw me.”

A soft sigh left Tony’s lips, and he smiled, brushing a strand of black hair away from Loki’s forehead. “Did you really think I would let them take you? That Thor would let them take you?”

“Thor?” Loki repeated quietly and looked around, as though he suspected to see the blond god sitting in the corner.

“He’s on the top floor,” Tony said slowly and smiled when Loki looked back at him. “Making sure Fury doesn't do anything stupid.”

The Trickster nodded slowly and let out a soft sigh, snuggling close to Tony again.

“You sat here the whole time, didn’t you?” he murmured and cupped one of Tony’s cheeks. “I heard you every time I had a nightmare. You kept him away,” he whispered, kissing him softly. “Thank you.”

“Always at your service,” Tony murmured back against his lips, holding him close. “I’m sorry I couldn’t—“ his voice broke and he swallowed hard, eyes fluttering shut when he felt the stinging again. “I’m sorry.”

He could feel Loki tense against him, but he was too afraid to open his eyes. Even the memory of Loki choking in the bubble was better in comparison to what his brain was showing him. He could see Loki looking at him with pity, disdain, even laughing at him.

Tony hated his brain for these things, and he knew deep inside it would never happen, and even if it did, it would all be a joke. Yet, he turned out to be too big of a chicken to open his eyes.

He felt the soft and warm hands on his cheeks and he tried to pull away from the touch but Loki tightened the grip and made Tony face him.

“Could you look at me?” came the soft voice.

Tony shook his head almost immediately, but after a moment, he swallowed hard and his eyes started to open slowly. First, he didn’t look at Loki; his gaze was directed at the collar of his deep green shirt he had the day Amora attacked and he had to gear up.

Tony remembered the look Loki gave him back in the lab before he flew out to help. It was breaking his heart that he had to say no to him right this moment. He was sure that if the situation was different, he would do everything Loki asked him while holding that look. He looked so afraid that Tony just wanted to hold him close and whisper over and over that everything would be okay. He never thought he would see this expression on Loki’s face ever again.

“Anthony, please?”

Tony pressed his lips in a tight line, teeth clenched and jaw tensed as he let out a heavy breath through his nose and finally looked at him. The corners of his lips quirked up at the soft look of green eyes. and he sighed quietly in relief, his hand moving up Loki’s back to comb through his soft curls.

“I was meaning to talk with you about that before Amora decided to make an appearance,” Loki said slowly and Tony could feel the thumb brushing over his cheekbone. “You need to stop, darling. You’ve done enough for me, let Thor take care of the things you can’t.”

“No,” he replied almost immediately, smile being replaced by a slight wince. “I can’t. I literally can’t, Loki. I need to protect you, I need to— I can’t let someone do _my_ job.”

“That doesn’t mean you can’t have any help with this job of yours. Thor is helping us. Not just me. You don’t know what Odin may do to someone, who helps a guilty man.”

“I don’t give a damn fuck about Odin. I just need him to leave you alone, I don’t care what happens to me,” he replied with his eyes narrowed with frustration.

Why couldn't Loki see he needed to do everything he could? He would do more if he had to, he didn’t care about the things that could happen to him on the way, he _needed_ to make Loki safe and free from any more punishments.

“I care what happens to you,” Loki said with force, hands tightening even more on Tony’s cheeks. “How can you even dare to think I would let anything happen to you?” he looked him straight in the eyes, and Tony could see how angry it made him. “I want to be free. I want to live with you without any fear but not for the price of your health or life. You will stop with this little madness of yours. Thor wants to help us, and we will accept this help. You said yourself we need him.”

“Well, I changed my mind,” Tony muttered and looked away. “I wanna do everything on my own. It’s my job.”

He could hear the huff of frustration from Loki, and he couldn’t help but grin under his nose. Somehow this situation had started to be funny to him, and he was pretty sure it was all because he knew it would end up with them fighting for hours. They would never be able to find a compromise, they were both too stubborn.

“Stop smiling, Stark,” Loki spat out, obviously still angry and that made Tony just grin wider. “I said stop smiling!”

Tony shook his head and looked back at him, shit-eating grin still present on his face. “Sorry, can’t do.”

Loki huffed again and hit him in the chest, a jolt of pain going through his body, but even that didn’t stop him from smiling. He just pulled Loki closer, eyes locked on his green ones and he kissed his nose, much to the other’s frustration.

“What is this?” Loki asked and tried to pull away.

Tony held him close, sure that Loki didn’t really want to move away. If he really wanted that, Tony would have been on the floor a long time ago. “I just thought about how long we would fight about this and—“ he shrugged and kept his grin in place. “We definitely do that too often, don’t you think?”

“It’s because you’re that stubborn,” Loki muttered and made another not really successful attempt to get away from Tony. “If you would listen to me, we wouldn’t have these fights at all.”

“You’re not exactly a saint yourself, babe,” Tony replied and tightened his embrace around Loki even more. “Do you have a spell for getting into someone else’s mind?” he asked, looking at the god curiously.

The question was so out of place to Loki that he just stilled in Tony’s arms and blinked a few times in confusion.

“Why would you want to get into someone else’s mind?”

“Not for me. I’d want you to get into mine,” he explained simply, his grin turning into a small smile.

Loki looked shocked at Tony’s words and shook his head violently. “No. There’s no spell,” he said, and Tony was surprised to see Loki lie without even trying to make it sound true. “Where did you get that idea from?”

“That was a pretty bad lie there, Loki,” Tony chuckled and moved his hair away from his forehead again. “I thought that if I can’t explain myself in words you could, you know, get into my head and…” he trailed off and looked out the window just above Loki’s shoulder.

This wasn’t a stupid idea. Tony tried to explain myself a few times already, every time they had a fight about this. Each time, Loki seemed like he didn’t understand, and that frustrated Tony even more, fueling him to keep up with the fight until both of them were done and walked into different rooms to be alone. He really wanted Loki understand how much it meant for him to take care of everything on his own and without Thor’s help. It made him useless, and he hated feeling like this. He needed a purpose and just taking care of SHIELD? This wasn’t too much considering that you would everything not to piss Odin off. And if Thor got to take care of the Allfather, what Tony had to do? Not much, for sure.

Loki sighed heavily, and his hands fell on Tony’s torso, fingers moving over his shirt and drawing an unknown patterns as The god thought about the answer.

“I don’t need a spell to understand you,” Loki said after a short while, his eyes locked on his own fingers. “I know why you don’t want Thor to help us. And I say you’re just being stubborn. You already did enough for me, and talking to Odin on your own isn’t the best of ideas.”

“I told you I don’t care about m—“

“But I do, Tony!” Loki cut him off and looked up into his eyes. “How would you feel if I tell you I will protect you even for the price of my own life?”

“I wouldn’t let you,” he replied almost immediately. “I’m not worth that much.”

“Yes, you are!” Loki rolled his eyes and grabbed handful of Tony’s shirt as though he wanted to shake him. “I love you, Tony. How can you think I would let you sacrifice yourself for me?”

“Because,” Tony started slowly, “that’s what people in love do for each other if there’s a need for it,” he said and looked back at him. “And I know you would do the same for me, even if I tell you not to do that. Am I right?”

Another sigh left Loki’s lips and this time he was the one to smile, hands letting of Tony’s shirt before one of the moved to cup his cheek  again.

“Let Thor help us,” he said quietly, his voice so soft Tony could fall asleep if he kept talking like that.

Tony watched him for a long moment, the look in the green eyes winning the battle for Loki. He chuckled in disbelief and brushed his nose against the god’s before he kissed him sweetly, humming in approval when he felt him kiss back.

“Okay,” he murmured against his lips after the kiss broke and he pulled away enough to looking him in the eyes again. “But you’ll let me take care of the stuff I know I’ll be able to do. And that includes Asgard, too.”

“Whatever you want,” Loki said tiredly, closing his eyes for a moment. “Have it your way this time.”

Tony grinned widely and kissed him again, a gasp of surprise slipping past his lips when Loki deepened the kiss. He didn’t complain, though, and he wasn’t exactly letting him dominate, either, so his hand slid down and under his green V-neck, fingers brushing over the god’s side. The effect was immediate, and Loki started chuckling, pushing Tony’s hand away.

“That’s cheating,” he commented and pushed Tony onto his back only to lay down on top of him. “We’re having it my way now,” he said with a mischievous smirk and kissed him lovingly, his hands sliding under Tony’s shirt and stroking over his sides.

Tony growled into the kiss, his own hands cupping Loki’s face as he kissed back, deepening the kiss a few seconds later. The moment he felt the god’s hands grip at his hips he knew there was something coming and he yelped when Loki flipped them over. He chose the wrong side, though and they landed on the floor, Tony whining in pain when his back hit the ground.

Their laughter filled the room a second later, followed by the moans of pleasure as they continued without moving back onto the bed, not caring about anything and anyone.

**Author's Note:**

> And so the time has come. It is my entry for a Frostiron Mini/Big Bang, and as you can see, it’s big. It’s not as big as I suspected it to be, but you can expect another part to this story in the future for sure ;)
> 
> And on that note, I’d like to thank [Jess](http://schadenfreudessa.tumblr.com/) for marvelous job at beta’ing even though she still has her own story to finish, and [Staubengel](http://staubengel.tumblr.com/) for the greatest fanart I could have ever dream of. Thank you so much! <3


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